Where do these people get off? Tel Aviv has just announced to the world that it wants to develop nuclear energy for its economy and plans to build a power plant. Correct me if I am wrong, but so far there have been no outcries for an economic boycott of Israel coming from Washington, Berlin, Paris or London as a result of this announcement. I'm wondering why not. I mean, isn't that what Tehran stated when it signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty and put its program under the inspection of the International Atomic Energy Agency? That was some time ago.

Tehran wants nuclear power for its economy just like France, Brazil, the USA, etc., and now Israel. The imploding Peace Prize President of the U.S. embarked last week on a campaign to kickstart the nuclear power industry in America, which has not built a nuclear power plant in decades. Nuclear power is in and seems to be the thing to do--except when Tehran wants to do it. Then it is not okay; then it is an outrage, a threat to world peace and security, etc, according to all the usual suspects. We are talking here about the mother of all double standards. As everybody knows, Tel Aviv is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty. 

At the same time Tel Aviv is announcing plans to pursue nuclear energy, the deputy foreign minister of the self-proclaimed "Jewish State" is reading the riot act to America and Europe. (See below.) Who is this guy? Danny Ayalon has given the West a timetable, maybe even a deadline, of 4 to 8 weeks for "diplomacy" to work to halt Iran's "nuclear ambitions" or else impose "crippling sanctions" on the Iranian economy. Ayalon's implied threat is that if the West does not do these things, Tel Aviv may be forced by circumstances beyond anyone's control to bomb Iran.

In a classic case of the-black-as-India-ink pot calling the kettle black, Ayalon, who is a former Tel Aviv ambassador to Washington,  proclaimed that Iran "is the source of instability in the Middle East. For Iran, the nuclear program is not a means but an end." Presumably, Ayalon's hyperventilated concern has something to do with the oft-repeated allegations coming from Tel Aviv, Washington, Paris, Berlin and London to the effect that Tehran is working on developing nuclear weapons, to wit, The Bomb, which allegations have no factual basis, at least according to the sixteen spy agencies who make up the U.S. intelligence community. 

But wait a minute. Hasn't Tel Aviv already done that in spades at its French-built nuclear reactor at Dimona since the 1960's? The "Jewish State" has hundreds of nuclear weapons at the ready, and the means to deliver them thanks to Washington and Berlin, including the latest hi-tech long-range German submarines outfitted with cruise missiles, gifted by Berlin to the boys in Tel Aviv. If this is the case--well known to Washington, Berlin, Paris and London--then why has the U.S. Congress not cut off all foreign aid to "the Jewish State" in accordance with the 1976 Symington Amendment which forbids US aid to states who contribute to nuclear proliferation? Take a guess.

A Reuters dispatch dated February 4th, 2009 and entitled "Israel sees no pressure on nuclear ambiguity policy" makes it clear what is going on. The double standard has been in full force and effect for over forty years:

According to declassified American documents cited by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists magazine, under President Richard Nixon the United States knew Israel had developed nuclear weapons but opted against insisting that its ally come clean on the capability and accept international regulation. This sanctioned reticence is a major irritant for Arabs and Iran, which see a double standard in U.S. policy in the region.

By not declaring itself to be nuclear-armed, Israel also skirts a U.S. ban on funding countries that proliferate weapons of mass destruction. It can thus enjoy some $3 billion (2 billion pounds) in annual military aid from Washington.

Tel Aviv gets the lion's share of U.S. foreign aid each and every year in advance, recession or no recession. This has been the case since time out of mind. Are we all living on the same planet? To use an Orwellianism, are some of us more equal than others? Who gets to decide? Creeps and con men like Danny Ayalon? Evidently. It is important to remember what Ariel Sharon told his colleagues including Danny Ayalon, who was Sharon’s chief foreign policy advisor, in October 2001: “I want to tell you something very clear. Don’t worry about American pressure on Israel. We, the Jewish people control America, and the Americans know it.”   =============================================================  

- News From Antiwar.com -

Israeli Official: West Has 4-8 Weeks Left for Iran Diplomacy

Posted By Jason Ditz On March 8, 2010 @ 7:49 pm In Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Adding to the harsh rhetoric coming out of the nation is recent days, Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon today announced that the nation was giving the West another 4-8 weeks to attempt diplomacy with Iran, and that after that they would have to impose crippling sanctions on the nation.

In his speech, Ayalon cautioned that Iran might try to inflate international oil prices to “sabotage” the sanctions against its petroleum industry, and urged China, a nation with economic interests in Iran, to seek alternative sources of energy in Saudi Arabia.

He urged international unity in the move against Iran’s civilian nuclear program, adding that “Iran is a big and vulnerable country… calling their bluff is the only way.” Israel has repeatedly threatened military strikes against Iran.

Israel’s threats against Iran are not new, but the growing number of US official visits in recent days are seen as being at least in part based on fear that an Israeli attack could be in the offing.

Though the US has been pressing for the “crippling sanctions” demanded by Israel for quite some time, Chinese officials have repeatedly reiterated their opposition to further sanctions. Russia has also said it will only accept very limited sanctions, and will oppose the “crippling” sanctions sought by Western nations.

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