Iran shot down a US surveillance drone on Wednesday, but despite some suggestions from hawks, the nation isn’t firing at everything that moves. Indeed, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard’s air defense forces pointed out another encroachment into their airspace to which they did not react.
An American Boeing P-8 airplane with 35 people on board entered Iranian airspace. Aerospace Force head Amir Ali Hajzadeh says Iran could have shot the plane down, but chose not to.
This report emerged early Friday, and is likely intended to be a conciliatory move, much like President Trump calling off the attack on Iran Thursday night in a desire not to kill 150 Iranians in the process.
While on the one hand, it is odd to think that the US and Iran are trying to spread a message of reconciliation by pointing out how many people they could’ve killed but didn’t. Still, this is a much preferable message to the mounting tensions and fears of confrontation coming ahead of that.
The P-8 plane isn’t just a small plane with passengers on it either, it’s a proper Boeing-made military aircraft operated by the US Navy. It is broadly used for anti-submarine operations, but also general anti-shipping efforts, and carries a number of torpedoes and other anti-surface weapons. That means this was a proper encroachment into Iranian airspace of a US military aircraft potentially intent on carrying out an attack.
And right there is the difference between Iran and the US. There would have been a blown up plane with 35 dead Iranians floating in water if the roles had been reversed.
Isn’t Trump now in a corner? He was maneuvered like a child into an ever tighter space. Now, anything can cause
a conflagration.
Except for one thing — fear of unknowns. Too many countries in uncharacteristic silence.
It used to be easy and fun. Trash weaker countries, get comfy, stay around, threaten with sanctions — now not so easy. Iran can sell all of its energy via Russian, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan ir Chinese pipelines through Turkmenistan. Not to mention via Turkey, anywhere.
And us our own air defense in good shape? Too many questions — too little time.
I don’t know, Bianca. Trump is the most sphincter-tightening president in my lifetime. And while the tension is frightening, still, everyone is now alert, complacency is destroyed, and we will now have to move … in some direction .. away from the unendurable status quo. Brinkmanship is scary as hell, and everyone is now thoroughly terrified. But I must say it clarifies the mind. Trump managed to take us right to the brink and then pull back in the nick of time. Is that talent, or is it rash incompetence? We’ll no doubt hear both claims — (mostly the latter, I expect.) Now comes the important part … where do we — where does Trump — go from here?
My preference: ***FIRE BOLTON AND POMPEO! FIRE THEM NOW!***
I completely agree with you that Trump
is a change agent, whatever the cause. He just might be born under (un) lucky star.
I rooted for him to win presidency precisely for that reason. He was a promising wrecking ball — and we needed one. With an instinct of a businessman , he grasped what was wrong with the spreading “we have to contain everyone” empire. His wrecking ball qualities are remarkable. He gives the worst of the scum to come to the surface, gives them room to spread wings — and they will get burned, as brinkmanship is exposing so many — Democrats and Republicans alike. Fangs are showing, no way back for many of them.
But American public is still asleep — save the few that are awake, and thankfully good chunk of Trump base is still furiously anti-meddling in ME.
But Trump is what was needed — a naked empire exposed for all to see.
I hope this works out like North Korea. Without “conceding”, but leave it to regional ally with most at stake to slowly manage commercial integration. ME is different because of Israel, and in spite of assertions that Israel and Saudis are besties — nothing the the sort is true. Thus, jilted lovers of Israel attacking everything Saudi in sight. No weapons for you, bad Prince MBS! But he can go to Russians if we do not sell, points out Trump, the art of the obvious! We will then… Scratching heads, while MBS prays fervently for an excuse to diversify friends. All exposed. There are serious dangers of overreaching, with cascading series of collapsed structures of current disorderly mess of sticks and rubber bands. We may not escape unscathed
Or maybe the status quo is looking good to a lot of folks right now. How else to explain Biden(Hillary with a penis) leading in some polls?
For all we know, that plane *was* going to do some sort of covert attack on Iran to start the Iran war, but the mission was blown when Iran shot down the drone. Anything is possible.
Maybe that plane was going to shoot a torpedo at an Iranian ship in “retaliation” for the tanker bombings or to give Iran the excuse to escalate further.
I read a report the other day that suggested that Iran has been the victim of apparent sabotage of its oil facilities in recent months and that the tanker bombings might have been Iran’s covert retaliation for those acts of sabotage carried out by unknown parties (read: Israel.)
Perhaps this plane was intended to be involved in some similar covert op. Or as Jason says, simply a direct provocation to Iran.
Thank you.