Iran again defies the U.N.
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Al Arabiya/February 19/16
The days when Iran was punished for violating international law are gone. For many, it is baffling that the country is now able to do so, particularly following the nuclear deal. In clear defiance of the U.N. Security Council (UNSC), Tehran test-fired long-range ballistic missiles and laser-guided surface-to-surface missiles several times. In October and November, it also tested a new ballistic missile that can carry multiple warheads. This week, Iranian Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan held talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu and President Vladimir Putin regarding delivery of the S-400 air defense system – a more advanced form of the S-300 – and the purchase of sophisticated Russian tanks and jet fighters. These developments took place after Iran received billions of dollars worth of sanctions relief. UNSC resolution 2231 bans Iran from purchasing “battle tanks, armored combat vehicles, large-caliber artillery systems, combat aircraft, attack helicopters [and] warships” without prior U.N. approval. UNSC resolution 1929 states: “Iran shall not undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using ballistic missile technology, and… States shall take all necessary measures to prevent the transfer of technology or technical assistance to Iran related to such activities.”
Offensive weaponry
Regarding the $8 billion contract between Iran and Russia, Tehran is concentrating on buying offensive weapons such as Su-30 fighter jets, and making its air force superior to that of Turkey and Arab states. With a robust military on the ground and powerful supporting air force, Tehran will be much better able to direct the conflicts in Syria and Iraq, as well as reduce the number of its casualties. Iran exaggerates its military power, but if it is not sent a strong message soon, it will be too late to contain it. Iran would not have announced such a provocative deal without an implicit green light from the United States and other UNSC members. Not having a clear agenda on how to deal with the Syrian crisis and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), Western powers have put Tehran in the driver’s seat. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is exploiting this situation. With a powerful military, the IRGC and Iranian leaders can not only frighten domestic opponents, but also gain the respect of world powers and send a message to countries in the region that they should not dare challenge Iran, that it can purchase whatever offensive weaponry it wants, that the West is on its side, and that even the United Nations will not object to its actions. The UNSC comprises five permanent members: Russia and China are on Tehran’s side, and Britain and France typically align with the United States. With U.S. President Barack Obama not wanting to scuttle his crowning foreign-policy accomplishment – the nuclear deal – every UNSC member now backs Iran . Tehran will be best contained if regional powers sanction it for violating international law. Iran exaggerates its military power, but if it is not sent a strong message soon, it will be too late to contain it.
Iran to Russia: Take $14bn and build us a modern army
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report February 19, 2016
Iran’s Defense Minister Gen. Hossein Dehghan arrived in Moscow this week at the head of a large military delegation and laid before President Vladimir Putin and his Defense Minister Gen. Sergei Shoigu a $14 billion check. Now, make our Revolutionary Guards Corps and regular forces into an up-to-the-minute war machine, he said.
The plan to make over and upgrade Iran’s military was first approved by Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. It is to be paid for with funds released by newly lifted sanctions against the Islamic Republic. The ayatollah aspires to rebuild the two branches – the IRGC with 150,000 troops and the regular army of 420,000 – as the most powerful armed force in the Middle East.
The fee on offer to Moscow covers the best-quality arms purchases and the foundation of a wide-ranging military industry for turning out Iran’s requirements of warplanes, tanks and other high-grade systems.
The entire project as presented to Russian leaders is estimated to unfold over 10 years, during which relations between Tehran and Moscow should grow progressively stronger.
However, according to informed Western military sources, the Iranian scheme is unrealistic. The Russian army and its defense ministry are not capable of meeting all of Iran’s military requirements for the next decade, even if its entire production output is set aside for this purpose. Russia is deeply immersed in two major wars in Ukraine and Syria. It is hard pressed to keep up with its own military needs, as well as with commitments undertaken under existing international arms contracts with China and India.
Iran’s shopping list is vast and formidable, as revealed here by DEBKAfile’s intelligence sources. It is topped by highly advanced ballistic missile technology, together with the special metals the Russians have developed for upgrading their own missiles and their engines.
Other items are:
Advanced SU-30 and SU-35 fighter-bombers
Spy planes, especially the latest model of the Tu-214R intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft that was posted last week in Syria
Submarines and different types of warships including missile ships
A large number of the top-of-the-line T-90 tank as standard equipment for both branches of the Iranian military. The Russians are to build factories for its production in Iran
The latest armored personnel carriers
MRLS rocket launchers of diverse calibers
Heavy, self-propelled artillery
Tehran appears to have taken Russian consent to this giant transaction as a given and regime officials are already enthusing over the “Russian weapons revolution” about to overtake its military. President Putin was quoted as agreeing in principle to the transaction, although he proposed first setting up a Russian-Iranian military team for examining the items on order and its financial aspects. Its conclusions would then be submitted to the decision making authorities of both governments before implementation goes ahead.
Commenting on these negotiations, a US official stressed Friday, Feb. 19, that the UN embargo on arms sales to Iran, embodied in the nuclear deal Iran signed with the six world powers last year, remains in force for five years.
