Leaks and peeks key to Israel's nuclear ambiguity

[Herschel]

Forty years ago a flustered Shimon Peres faced off with U.S. President John F. Kennedy on a secret seen as key to the Jewish state's survival, and got away with saying next to nothing.

"Kennedy began bombarding me with questions. Suddenly he says, 'Are you making an atom bomb?' I told him, 'Mr. President, I can promise you one thing: Israel will not be the first to introduce nuclear weapons into the Middle East,'" Peres recalled in the recent documentary film "A Bomb in the Basement".

That sidestep by Israel's veteran statesman evolved into a strategy of ambiguity straddling two national needs -- to strike fear into numerically superior foes while calming global jitters at any doomsday sabre-rattling in the volatile Middle East.

"We chose uncertainty, which afforded deterrence as far as the Arabs were concerned and convenience as far as our friends were concerned," Peres said.

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http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=401541§ion=news

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Better to leave Israel and America's foes guessing.

[Darranar]

1. Peres lied...

Israel was the first to introduce nuclear weapoms into the Middle East.

[Herschel]

2. Skillful diplomacy

by two great friends helps preserve Israel in a sea of enemies.

[Darranar]

4. ?

[dfong63]

5. there's a difference between diplomacy and duplicity

Skillful diplomacy by two great friends helps preserve Israel in a sea of enemies.

Israeli duplicity is someday going to cost Israel her only great friend, leaving Israel completely alone in that sea of enemies. it would be wiser for Israel to make friends and make peace, which Israel could do by giving back what she stole.

[Muddleoftheroad]

6. I love that line of argument

As if ANYTHING Israel can do will really make the Arab world friendly.

Perhaps if the ARABS had agreed to partition, this wouldn't have happened. Perhaps if the ARABS hadn't chosen to be Israel's enemy for 55 years, this wouldn't have happened.

Face it, under NO scenario, are the Palestinians getting all of the land taken in 1967. That ship has sailed. Now, the more they delay peace, the less they will be offered because their negotiating position gets worse.

[The Magistrate]

7. A Difference Between Diplomacy And Duplicity, Mr. Fong?

No more than between a dagger and a dirk, Sir.

[Muddleoftheroad]

3. Define the Middle East

Is Turkey part of it? We used to have nukes there. Did the Soviets have any in their numerous client states in the region?

[BushCutters]

8. Of course Turkey is part of the ME!

Okay, you can all let the new guy in on the joke :wtf: ... the poster you responded to wasn't serious, right?

[Darranar]

9. Then he told Kennedy what Kennedy already knew...

since the Cuban missile crisis - where US missiles in Turkey were removed - was in 1962. This interview, according to the article (unless it rounded) was in 1963.

I guess it was simply deliberate distortion, then, and not lying. Sorry.

[Muddleoftheroad]

10. No distortions, truth

'Mr. President, I can promise you one thing: Israel will not be the first to introduce nuclear weapons into the Middle East.'

Since Turkey is part of the Mideast, Israel wasn't the first to introduce nuclear weapons there.

[Darranar]

11. And?

Those weapons were aimed at the soveit Union, not at a country in the Middle East. The Cold War and the Arab-Israeli conflict intersected at times, but they weren't the same conflict.

I can say that Dean didn't vote for the Iraq war or the Patriot Act; while that's true, it is still a distortion because Dean wasn't in Congress at the time. Distortion by selectivity is a common tactic of propagandists everywhere.

[BushCutters]

12. Changing the subject;

with all due respect, your words were:

"Israel was the first to introduce nuclear weapoms into the Middle East."

The poster to whom you responded pointed out that isn't true. You then decided to take this into where the weapons may or may not have been aimed. Therefore, your reply doesn't seem 'kosher'.

[Darranar]

13. Uh... what?

Please do me a favor and read the thread. Or just post #11, and Muddle's reply to it.

[BushCutters]

16. Uh...okay!

I already read the thread.

Because apparently you could not refute Muddle's reply, you attempted to take the discussion on a ride of your own choosing. I pointed that out with your own words.

So, why do you think you should be telling me what to read, what to post...and, please, don't ask for any more favors. :eyes:

[Darranar]

17. ?

Actually, I acknowledged that Muddle was right. What more is there to argue about on that particular issue?

"You're right"

"I'm right"

"You're right"

"I'm right"

and so on...

Don't you think it might get tedious after a while?

So I took the thread in another direction, because he was right.

[BushCutters]

18. Where did you acknowledge Muddle was right?

Do me a favor and post just that part again.

[Muddleoftheroad]

14. Welcome to politics

Wow, a politician who says what he says very carefully so it is accurate AND might be misperceived. I am entirely shocked.

Sorry, true is true. If you say Dean didn't vote for the Iraq war and he didn't, it's true. It's up to others to ask the right followup questions.

In the meantime, it was still true.

[Darranar]

15. You think I didn't know that?

Politicians lie, distort, and mislead all the time. It's their job.

The point of my original point is that Israeli politicians are no different, the same way that the IDF is no more moral then the US military.