IHT/AP: France stages large-scale military exercises with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates
France has begun large-scale military exercises off Iran's coast with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, a little over a month after becoming one of the first Western countries other than the U.S. to have a base in the Persian Gulf region.
France signed the basing deal with the UAE in January, and the current military maneuvers are taking place within the Emirates and off its coast facing Iran. The exercises, dubbed Gulf Shield 01, began on Saturday and involve 1,500 troops from France, 2,500 from the Emirates and 1,300 from Qatar, according the French military's official Web site.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has taken a hardline stance toward Iran's controversial nuclear program, joining the U.S. in warning that Tehran's activities could lead to weapons development — an accusation denied by Iran.
The military exercises, which run through March 5, come only a few weeks after five small Iranian speed boats harassed three U.S. Navy war ships in the narrow Strait of Hormuz, located near the Emirates.
"COINCIDENTALLY": French Minister of the Interior Michele Alliott-Marie arrived here on Sunday on an official visit to the Kingdom.
She was greeted upon arrival by Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdelaziz and French ambassador to the Kingdom.
The French minister is expected to meet the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz and engage in discussions with Prince Nayef on security cooperation between the two countries.
THOUGH IT MIGHT SEEM SO TO SOME: IRAN IS NOT OFF THE FRONT BURNER.
:)
ReplyDeleteIn march there is going to be "elections" in Iran. The government is trying to slow down the voting process so that bigger lines would appear at voting stations. The Grand Ayatollah Khamenei was recorded on tape alluding to that in his last Friday prayers sermon. He says "it is your duty to go and stand in the lines, even if it is one hour and it is cold, show your presence!" I am hoping that mass media i not going to ignore the Iranian publics' opinion about the regime and hopefully CNN, BBC and etc. will not only cover the official version of the vetted and controlled "election"
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