"Saudi Arabia is very concerned about Iran's growing power," said Israeli aviation expert Arie Egozi. In his opinion, "Riyadh is doing everything possible to protect its oil resources and other strategic facilities." Riyadh also does not rule out that if the situation in the Middle East aggravates, Tehran will bomb the kingdom's military facilities and oil fields. Shiite Iran claims to occupy a leadership position in the Islamic world, which for centuries has been occupied by the Sunni SA, on whose territory Mecca and Medina are located, sacred places for every Muslim.
A high-ranking officer of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Reza Kahlili, who fled to the United States, speaking at the Washington Institute for the Middle East, spoke about the plans of his former masters to strike at Israel, the Persian Gulf countries and a number of European states.
According to Kahlili, who was apparently a CIA agent, the current Iranian regime "is guided by messianic considerations and is preparing to commit the worst suicide attacks in the history of mankind."
It is clear that the SA and other Arabian monarchies are watching with concern the Iranian nuclear preparations. Moreover, it is Riyadh, considering itself the most powerful Arabian state, and accepts the main responsibility for the defense of the peninsula. According to the Kingdom's official news agency Saudi Press Angency, Riyadh is on a course to develop its own nuclear program. However, just in case, the word “nuclear” will be omitted in the name of the new industrial structure being created. The Saudis have previously named the new facility the King Abdullah Energy Development Center. The development of the nuclear program is again caused by fear on the part of Iran, but, undoubtedly, it will contribute to the solution of problems in the civilian sector. Riyadh is confident that Washington will not "notice" the transformation of a peaceful nuclear program into a military one.
NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGIES ARE INTERESTED BY EVERYONE
The example of the Saudis was contagious. The principalities of the Persian Gulf have also shown interest in the development of nuclear technology. Thus, Kuwait in April of this year signed an agreement with France for the purchase of nuclear technology and equipment. And in May, the Atomic Energy Authority of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that it was starting construction of a nuclear facility that would be operational in seven years. Egypt and Qatar did not stand aside, which also announced their intentions to develop nuclear technologies and related infrastructure. Syria is also showing interest in nuclear technology. However, Damascus has no reason to fear its ally Tehran. And although, according to the Arab proverb, “love and hate lie in the same basket,” the Syrians still want to get hold of and demonstrate the nuclear club, first of all, to Israel. At a recent conference in Paris under the auspices of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said that his country is considering "ways to obtain alternative energy sources, including nuclear." Israeli observer Michael Freund accuses Washington of creating "optimal conditions for a nuclear arms race in the Middle East, which threatens to completely destabilize an already unstable region."
In the most popular English-language newspaper here, The Jerusalem Post, Freund writes: “This grim scenario was made possible by Washington's refusal to take decisive steps against the Iranian regime with its nuclear ambitions. This policy of inaction and waiting was pursued by the administration of George W. Bush, and under the current President Barack Obama, it received additional justification and legitimization."
FIRST BUSINESS AIRCRAFT
Despite the unwinding of the nuclear flywheel by the Saudis, they do not forget about conventional weapons. The SA pays special attention to its Air Force, which is considered one of the strongest in the region. They have an advanced early warning system AWACS and a significant number of F-15 aircraft. Riyadh recently signed a contract with US-based Goodrich Corporation (GC), a leading provider of systems and services to the aerospace and defense industry, to upgrade its 150 F-15 aircraft with advanced control systems. A GC spokesman said that upgrading all aerodynamics (ailerons, flaps, rudders and wings) of Saudi aircraft would bring these machines to par with American combat aircraft. Jane's Defense, a London-based weekly magazine, reported the contract was valued at approximately $ 50 million.
Riyadh has also signed a contract with another American company, Lockheed Martin (LM), to improve Sniper guidance systems for F-15s. John Rogers, who leads the development of the LM programs for the SA, says bluntly: “Of course, the kingdom cannot buy Israeli weapons systems, considered the best in the world, from the manufacturer. Therefore, the Saudis buy these systems from us. The UK signed a contract with the Saudis to sell 72 Typhoon multi-role fighters with weapons and maintenance to Riyadh for a total of $ 32.9 billion. do not upgrade. Under the contract, 24 Typhoon fighters will be produced in the UK, while the remaining 48 will presumably begin assembly at factories in SA, which seeks to create its own military industry.
SA is also developing its own improvement program, within the framework of which the service life of fighter-bombers and precision equipment will be increased. Mustafa Alani, director of the Security and Terrorism Research Program at the Dubai Research Center, believes that the main impetus that prompted Riyadh to modernize its air force was the need to prepare to repel a possible Iranian attack. “The air force and missile forces will play the main role in the war with Iran,” Alani is convinced. "Therefore, Riyadh is obliged to expand the capabilities of its air force and the Saudi strategy is focused on joint actions with the Americans."
SECRET ALLIANCE
Moreover, Jerusalem and Riyadh, realizing that nuclear Tehran would not particularly distinguish between Zionists and the "cradle of Sunni", went on a secret rapprochement. According to the Times of London, the Saudi authorities have provided Israeli aviation with an air corridor for preemptive strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities. The newspaper claims that an exercise was secretly held in the SA, in which the scenario with the passage of Israeli bombers over the northern regions of the country was worked out. Potential targets in Iran are located at a distance of 2, 2 thousand kilometers from the Jewish state. This distance can be covered by bombers on condition of refueling in the air, but the maneuvering capabilities will be sharply limited.
The provision of a corridor by the Saudis to the Israelis significantly shortens the distance and at the same time gives the aircraft freedom of maneuver. The Israeli aviation attack will primarily target nuclear facilities in Natanz, Qom, Arak and Isfahan. The Bushehr reactor, being built with Russian assistance, is likely to be attacked by the latter. It is possible that Jordan, Iraq and Kuwait will follow the example of the SA and allow Israeli aircraft to fly over their territory. Then Iran will be attacked from several directions. It is impossible to ignore the statement of the UAE Ambassador to the United States, Yousef al-Otaiba, who, without resorting to diplomatic floridness, expressed himself absolutely unequivocally: "The benefits of an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities outweigh the short-term losses from such a step."
Al-Otaiba also predicted the withdrawal of "vulnerable Arabian monarchies from America if President Obama does not prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power." The UAE Ambassador cannot be denied courage, for he resolutely continued his thought and named the country to which "small rich vulnerable countries" would join in an unfavorable combination of circumstances. Of course, this is not Israel, but … the same Iran. And nevertheless, the circle will not be closed to the end in this case, for Riyadh will fight Tehran to the end.
"Like England and Germany after the fall of France and other European states," commented on the statement of Ambassador Youssef al-Taiba, a very knowledgeable diplomat of one of the Arab countries, in an interview with me. It is noteworthy that the ambassador ended his comment as follows: "And Israel in this case will play the role of Russia." And in this comparison there was only a fraction of a joke. It is clear that without a signal from Washington, Jerusalem is unlikely to dare to bomb Iran. Moreover, in conjunction with the Arab countries. But the Americans are also preparing. Heavy guided bombs have already been delivered to the military base in Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean to destroy fortified military installations. This airbase has already been used twice to deliver strikes on Saddam's Iraq.
BATTLE FOR INNOVATION
Another fact is noteworthy. Riyadh has entered into competition with Tehran in the field of technical research and innovation. Including in the military field. For the next five years, the kingdom is allocating $ 400 billion for this purpose. A fantastic amount! There are eight universities in CA where world-renowned scientists work. The International Center for Contemporary Knowledge is located on the Tuval Peninsula, 80 kilometers from Jeddah, a royal summer residence on the shores of the Red Sea. The first students have already become 314 people from 60 countries of the world. Teaching is conducted in English. Chun Fon Shih, who headed the National University of Singapore for nine years, became the rector of the university. Against the backdrop of an open confrontation with Iran from a position of strength, the SA is trying to improve its relations with the Syrian regime. Syria is ruled by an "Alawite group" led by Bashir Assad.
And it should be noted that Alavism is a special religious trend in Islam, which is not recognized by all Islamic authorities as "truly righteous." Relatively recently, a number of Ayatollahs, under pressure from Tehran, considered it a "branch of Shiism." But the Sunnis seem to disagree.
It cannot be ruled out that Riyadh is setting the task of tearing Damascus away from Tehran. And above all militarily. The Saudis are ready to provide Assad with huge financial resources on the only condition - to break or at least cool the current close relations with the Tehran regime. Through Damascus, Riyadh hopes to "tame" the Lebanese Shiite terrorist organization Hezbollah. But the Saudis are failing. Syria is a poor country and, of course, needs money. But he cannot receive them by breaking with Iran. The entire structure of political power and military relations in Damascus is tied to Tehran. And the Iranian "wallet", albeit not as dimensionless as that of the SA, is always open to the "hand of Damascus". As for Hezbollah, this organization is not a puppet of Damascus, but of Tehran. So in the confrontation between the SA and the entire Sunni world with Iran, the reckoning may be on themselves, the United States, and, to a lesser extent, England and France. And again to Israel.
