The State Department today issued a statement publicly disputing comments by Marine Commandant and Joint Chiefs of Staff nominee General Joe Dunford, who yesterday declared Russia an “existential threat” to the United States.
“The secretary doesn’t agree with the assessment that Russia is an existential threat to the United States, nor China, quite frankly,” spokesman Mark Toner insisted during the daily State Department press briefing. He went on to say that the US and Russia have “disagreements” but that isn’t the same thing.
Gen. Dunford made the claims in testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee, labeling Russia an existential threat because of “recent actions” in Ukraine. He went on to list the top threats as Russia, China, North Korea, and ISIS “in that order.”
While officials often rail on about “Russian aggression” because they are backing opposite sides in the Ukrainian Civil War, it is noteworthy that the State Department still felt it worth disputing the presumptive new military chief’s assessment of them, and may suggest a significant split on US policy toward the Russians.
That's surprising. After reading the headline I thought it would be the other way around–the neocon infested State Department arguing for the existential threat and cool heads at the Pentagon arguing against it. So it's worrying too, that these days likud's agenda has been adopted by the Pentagon. Of course, Kerry's view in the issue is irrelevant since that Nuland harlot is in charge of policy with Russia.
I feel its more about maintaining a big budget for the MIC. The recent announcement of a 40,000 troop reduction in the next few years has the MIC scrambling for a new bogey man to help drum up support for a bloated budget. The State Dept isn't as dependent upon a existenial military threat to finance ittself. Its about power and money, same as it ever was.
the MAD Doctrine negates the problem, however the Pentagon actually think they can win a Nuclear showdown with the Russians! With their Anti ballistic missile system nearly completed they are confident that they can get MOST of the Nukes Russia would send off if the US attacked them, and it will be the US that attacks or its current proxies but it will be a Non Nuclear attack it will probably be next March, when the system is completed and they go Nuclear on warning (that's the US by the way)! For all of you in America for those Nukes that do get through just blame the Pentagon as they are the ones that WILL start it, them and NULAND!
What would be the target of these Russian nukes? Nuking cities is militarily useless and would simply provoke a 9/11-style desire for vengance amomg Americans. Nuclear weapons are not sufficiently precise to hit military targets from afar and, in any event, they would have to hit ALL military targets simultaneously to be effective. Thus, I don't see anyone ever using nuclear weapons in the 1950s-style secnario this blogger envisages.
In contrast there's one thing the Majority World and I suspect most citizens of the west (if not their craven politicians) agree on. The USA is probably the single most dangerous existential threat to the planet's survival. How to stop it before it destroys all of us is probably the single greatest challenge of the age.
Perhaps there should be a program implemented for office holders in the Pentagon and federal government that all high officeholders who affect US policy be required to submit to a daily regimen of antiandrogen agents – medroxyprogesterone acetate and luprolide acetate come to mind – as a deterrent to extreme and rampant hyper-aggression and other testosterone-related diseases. That would be preferred to the alternative of castration, of course.
Clutching at straws, Mr Ditz! State is simply saying that Putin doesn't threaten America's or China's existence, i.e. if Putin got into a war either he would lose. That's not really news.Indeed, that's why Putin's American supporters are so frantically trying to hold Obama back.
Do you think a nuclear war with Russia would be something you would watch on Fox News, eat popcorn, and your way of life not be affected? Nuclear winter would affect it.
This open disagreement within the government is significant. Is Kerry a closet dove? That may be overstating it, but this is worth watching.
Kerry is probably outnumbered. My sense is that the Senate really likes Dunford's war talk, and will approve him.
He forgot the top threat. The war profiteers and their puppets in Congress who waste resources on a massive scale and the economy! Is he just trying to get the job or does he really believe Russia's actions in Ukraine is an existential threat to the US?
they do, however, agree on the threat to their financing due to Putin ignoring them
Senior military officials, particularly over at NATO, speak as if their main job is to sell weapons systems by hyping alleged threats. ISIS doesn't move the product – meaning aircraft carriers, F-35s, "missile defence" hardware, and all the support service contracts associated with new bases – the way Russia and China can.
JJC is spot-on.