Penny Improving. Biden Pays Off Obama At Israel And America's Expense? Much More.

Penny, the rescued dog is making progress:

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U.S. Sending Soviet Air Defense Systems It Secretly Acquired to Ukraine

The Pentagon over the years has acquired Soviet equipment as part of a clandestine program, and now such weapons are going to Ukraine

By Nancy A. Youssef and Michael R. Gordon

The Soviet-era equipment is decades old and was obtained by the U.S. so it could examine the technology used by the Russian military.

Photo: U.S. Air Force

WASHINGTON—The U.S. is sending some of the Soviet-made air defense equipment it secretly acquired decades ago to bolster the Ukrainian military as it seeks to fend off Russian air and missile attacks, U.S. officials said.

The systems, which one U.S. official said include the SA-8, are decades old and were obtained by the U.S. so it could examine the technology used by the Russian military and which Moscow has exported around the world.

The weapons are familiar to Ukraine’s military, which inherited this type of equipment following the breakup of the Soviet Union.

The Pentagon declined to comment on the U.S. decision to reach into its little-known arsenal of Soviet weapons, which comes as the Biden administration is mounting a major push to expand Ukraine’s air defense capabilities.

The U.S. over the decades has acquired a small number of Soviet missile defense systems so that they could be examined by U.S. intelligence experts and help with training American forces.

Video Shows Kyiv Shopping Center Explosion; Ukraine Says It Won’t Surrender Mariupol

Video Shows Kyiv Shopping Center Explosion; Ukraine Says It Won’t Surrender Mariupol

The Ukrainian government rejected Russia’s deadline to lay down weapons in Mariupol; a security camera captured the attack on a shopping center in Kyiv; the United Nations said the war has forced 10 million people to abandon homes. Photo: Serhii Nuzhnenko/Reuters

The secretive efforts received public attention in 1994 when a Soviet-made transport plane was observed at the Huntsville, Ala., airport within sight of a major highway. It was later disclosed that the plane was carrying an S-300 air defense system that the U.S. had acquired in Belarus as part of a clandestine project involving a Pentagon contractor that cost $100 million, according to a former official involved in the mission.

The S-300—called the SA-10 by NATO—is a long-range, advanced air defense system intended to protect large areas over a much wider radius. The SA-8 is a short-range, tactical air defense system designed to move with ground forces and provide cover from aircraft and helicopters. While the SA-8 has a shorter range, it is highly mobile and potentially easier to hide.

Some of the Soviet-style weapons have been kept at the Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, which its website notes serves as “the Army’s center for missile and rocket programs.” At least some of what the U.S. sent was from that base, said officials, who added that C-17s recently flew to a nearby airfield at Huntsville.

The S-300 from Belarus wasn’t among the systems that are being sent to Ukraine, one U.S. official said.

The annual government spending bill recently passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden includes language that authorizes the administration to transfer to the Ukrainian military and to North Atlantic Treaty Organization partners aircraft, ammunition, vehicles, and other equipment that is either already overseas or in existing stockpiles.

Staffers with Sen. Joni Ernst (R., Iowa), who advocated for the language, said Soviet-era air defense systems would be covered by the new legislation. Congress was notified about the U.S. decision, officials said.

Ukraine already possesses some Russian air defense systems, including the S-300. It needs more such systems, however, that can operate at medium and long range to blunt Russia’s aircraft and missile attacks. The shoulder-fired Stinger missiles that the U.S. and NATO nations are providing to Ukraine are only effective against helicopters and low-flying aircraft.

The U.S. is hoping that the provision of additional air defenses will enable Ukraine to create a de facto no-fly zone, since the U.S. and its NATO allies have rebuffed Ukraine’s appeals that the alliance establish one. Such a step, Biden administration officials have said, could lead to a direct confrontation between the U.S.-led alliance and Russian forces, which it is determined to avoid.

Mr. Biden is traveling to Brussels this week for a NATO summit to discuss “ongoing deterrence and defense efforts” for Ukraine, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also have visited the eastern bloc to discuss ways to bolster Ukraine’s defensive weapons.

“We are continuing to work with our allies and key partners to surge new assistance, including Soviet- or Russian-origin antiaircraft systems and the necessary ammunition to employ them, every day to Ukraine,” a U.S. official said.

Mr. Austin last week visited Slovakia to explore if the country would send an S-300 from its arsenal. Slovakia has said that it would do so if the U.S. would provide it with a replacement, but such an arrangement has yet to be agreed.

American-made weapons such as the Patriot air defense system are in short supply and require American military personnel or months of U.S. training to operate. German and Dutch Patriot units are being sent to Slovakia as a stopgap, those governments have said.

“We’ve been in discussion” with the U.S., Slovakia Minister of Defense Jaroslav Nad’ told reporters during a joint press conference with Mr. Austin on Thursday. “Should there be a situation that we have a proper replacement or that we have a capability guaranteed for a certain period of time, then we would be willing to discuss the future of [the] S-300 system.”

—Gordon Lubold, Lindsay Wise and Courtney McBride contributed to this article.

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Biden appears ready to pay off Obama at the existential risk to Israel.

Iran nuclear agreement will exact ‘high price’ if it goes ahead, ex-intel official warns YAAKOV LAPPIN / JNS Brig. Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser tells JNS Israel should move to pressure Biden administration in time left before signing • Addressing Russia’s war, Kuperwasser says Jerusalem “naturally stands with Ukraine and the West.”

By  NEWS / US prepares to sign major appeasement deal with Iran ISRAEL KASNETT / JNS “It almost looks as if the United States is content with enabling the worst elements of the regime to enrich and to continue their crimes against humanity,” said Jonathan Schanzer, senior vice president for research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. ++++++++++++++++++ Fitton seeks documents to make sure Biden's Atty. General is not thwarting Durham's efforts: Judicial Watch Sues DOJ for Records of Communication Between Special Counsel John Durham and Attorney General Merrick Garland Lawsuit Also Seeks Durham Budget Records (Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice for records of communication between Special Counsel John Durham and Attorney General Merrick Garland (Judicial Watch, Inc. v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 1:22-cv-00734)). The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia after the DOJ failed to respond to an August 23, 2021, FOIA request for: 1. All records of communication, including emails and text messages, between Special Counsel John Durham and Attorney General Merrick Garland. 2. All budget records related to the operations of the office of Special Counsel John Durham. Senators Ron Johnson and Chuck Grassley raised concerns last year about whether the Justice Department was in potential conflict with the Durham investigation because a senior Justice official, Susan Hennessey, had previously made statements attacking the Durham Investigation. The senators said, in December 2021, that Hennessey “expressed a clear partisan bias against the Special Counsel’s investigation,” referring to one of her tweets: “Durham has made abundantly clear that in a year and a half, he hasn’t come up with anything. I guess this kind of partisan silliness has become characteristic of Barr’s legacy, but unclear to me why Durham would want to go along with it.” Durham’s investigation began in May 2019, and he was officially designated as Special Counsel in October 2020. “It shouldn’t take a federal lawsuit to get answers to simple requests for information about Garland’s communications with Durham and basic budget documents about the Durham Special Counsel operation,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. ++++++++++ Biden has blown another success Trump accomplished. What's next? To make matters even more ludicrous/bizarre this is a dumb time for Saudi and Emiratis leaders to link with a war criminal.  A Crisis in U.S.-Middle East Relations Neither the Saudis nor the Emiratis will take Biden’s calls. The U.S. needs to recommit to the region. By Firas Maksad When the leaders of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates decline phone calls from the president of the United States, rebuff his requests to help lower oil prices, and shy away from condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and when the U.A.E. hosts Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad in Abu Dhabi, there is no doubt a major crisis in U.S.-Arab Gulf relations is under way. This will be exacerbated in the weeks ahead if the U.S. nears an agreement with Iran over its nuclear program, lifting many sanctions in the process. How Washington handles this unfolding predicament will shape the region’s future, and America’s place in it, for decades. To some in the West, the behavior of some of America’s Arab Gulf partners typifies the sort of erratic decisions made by strongmen such as Russia’s Vladimir Putin. But does that explain why most of America’s other Middle Eastern allies—Israel, Jordan, Turkey and Egypt—also are expanding ties to Russia and China at America’s expense? Are all these countries led by irrational strongmen? No, America’s Middle Eastern partners have rationally concluded that they need to diversify their foreign-policy options given Washington’s reluctance to uphold its defense commitments. Dramatic scenes of the disorderly U.S. exit from Afghanistan confirmed that America is in retreat. For Saudi Arabia and the U.A.E. in particular, the lack of a meaningful American response to Iran-sponsored drone attacks on airports and oil facilities in 2019 and 2022 was the straw that broke the camel’s back. After the last major attack this January, the U.A.E. didn’t hear from U.S. senior administration officials, and when Gen. Frank McKenzie, America’s top commander in charge of the region, paid a visit over three weeks later, Mohamed bin Zayed, the country’s de facto leader, refused to meet with him. Concerns about America’s commitment had morphed into feelings of abandonment and anger. Then when Mr. Biden wanted to call to ask for help lowering oil prices weeks later, his U.A.E. counterpart was unavailable to take the call. The Biden administration’s behavior toward the Gulf Arab states contradicts its National Security Strategy, which emphasizes revitalizing America’s alliances and partnerships. Team Biden has two mistaken assumptions: that the rise of China and return of Russia as great-power rivals necessitates a recalibration from the Middle East to Southeast Asia and now to Eastern Europe, and that achieving detente with Iran, beginning with a nuclear deal, would make the region more stable. To U.S. officials, these assumptions are complementary and mutually reinforcing: An American retreat from the Middle East should make Iran less aggressive. In turn, a U.S.-Iran detente would allow Washington more time to focus on emerging threats elsewhere. On the surface this appears to be a win-win arrangement, since Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E. and Israel in theory stand to benefit from an Iranian commitment to de-escalation. But this strategy is built on faulty foundations. In reality, the Middle East is “the Wild West of great power competition” according to Gen. McKenzie. It sits at the crossroads of three continents and includes three of the world’s most important maritime choke points, vital for global trade and commerce. It also accounts for about half of global oil reserves and more than a third of oil production. The U.S. can’t engage effectively in a great-power competition while relinquishing its dominant position in such a strategic part of the world. When the void left by the U.S. is being filled by Russian military encroachment in North Africa, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Red Sea corridor, and as China has displaced the U.S. as the lead trading partner for most of the Middle East, allies and partners will need to adjust accordingly. There is also no guarantee that an American-Iranian detente would lead to a more stable Middle East. Once most Western sanctions are lifted, and American deterrence across the region wanes, Iran’s appetite for expansionism will likely increase. This could feed further conflict, stiffen Saudi determination to match Iran by also becoming a threshold nuclear state, and suck the U.S. into future military entanglements. Saudi Arabia and the U.A.E. have deepened cooperation with both Russia and China out of necessity, not preference. Should the Biden administration renew its commitment to regional defense by publicly affirming a strategic alliance, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi will revert to more-cooperative ties with Washington, including on oil prices, at the expense of Moscow and Beijing. It isn’t too late. The U.S. can signal its renewed commitment to the region by designating a special envoy assigned to restore trust and elevate the relationship, particularly since there hasn’t been a U.S. ambassador in Riyadh or Abu Dhabi for years. The U.S. can also expand Arab Gulf air defenses by meeting requests for deploying more anti-missile defense systems, stepping up intelligence cooperation, and providing early warning against incoming attacks. All these measures are purely defensive, and none are likely to draw the U.S. into new conflicts. To the contrary, they would deter unanticipated escalation and provide billions in revenue to the U.S. economy through new defense sales. More importantly, they would help assure that a strategic part of the world remains within America’s orbit, that policies of key partners remain in sync with U.S. interests, and that phone calls from the president don’t go unanswered. Mr. Maksad is an adjunct professor at George Washington University’s Elliott School for International Affairs and a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute. ++++++++++++++++++ Will anything be done about the 51 liars who are senior intelligence personnel?  No wonder we tend to get everything wrong. Our intelligent people do not seem to have integrity and are utterly stupid. +++ https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/huntergate-putin-danger-propaganda-liz-peek Huntergate and Putin remind us of the danger of propaganda Suppression of Hunter Biden story should alarm every American who believes in freedom of speech  By Liz Peek +++ With Hunter’s Laptop Fully Verified, What Needs to Be  Said of the Debunked Intelligence Letter? By Brad Slager +++ Biden's Handling of Ukraine Shows He’s No Foreign Policy   Guru. He’s Just an Idiot. By +++ There comes a time when a true hero can overstate his views and come across projecting he believes he can drink his own bath water: By  Vlodomor Zelenskyy, So let's clear a few things up... You're the underdog here and Israel usually aligns itself with the underdog because the truth is that in every war we've fought, we were the underdog because we were out-numbered, isolated, and countries like yours chose to align themselves with our enemies. In your case, more than 35 times in recent years. Let's be clear, Israel doesn't owe Ukraine ANYTHING. It is our choice to send what aid we feel is appropriate, and we have. Vast amounts of humanitarian aid, medical assistance, bullet proof ambulances and more. You're welcome. Your comparison of the Holocaust to today's fight is abhorrent and historically inaccurate. The Jews didn't have an army, anti-aircraft missiles, 100,000 rifles to distribute to our people and no military training.  No one sent aid and rescue missions and let's not even begin to describe how the majority of the Ukrainians treated our people. You feel that we owe you because you are Jewish...your parents are Jewish. I guess we won't mention that your children are not only not-Jewish, but have, with your permission, been baptized. So let's do this. You stop complaining that Israel isn't doing enough, start saying thank you and next time a vote comes up in the UN, remember how many Arab countries stood by, while Israel acted. And if you want Israel to CONTINUE to support Ukraine, don't you dare compare your situation, where tragically over 900 have died, to the massacre of more than six million Jews in World War II, to the victims who lie in mass graves, like Babi Yar.  We'll help...not because you are a Jew, but because WE are Jews. 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