The First Law of Russian Foreign Policy - always apply this filter

Iran poses no threat to US: Russia
Iran poses no threat to the United States, Russia said Tuesday, rebuffing a key argument of President Barack Obama on whether to go ahead with a European missile shield bitterly opposed by Moscow.

Former president George W. Bush had infuriated Russia by striking a deal to install 10 missile interceptors in Poland and related radar stations in the Czech Republic, saying they were needed to counter "rogue states" such as Iran.

The Obama administration says it is reviewing the shield project, studying whether it is militarily justified and cost effective.

But Sergei Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to the United States, said that the Iran threat was a myth.

"I don't see any threat to the United States coming from Iran anytime soon," Kislyak told a conference of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

I agree, let's wait until we can't attack and wipe out their ability to produce nuclear weapons or their ability to deliver them. They like us, right? It's not as if they run around chanting 'DEATH TO AMERICA' or anything like that, right?

Why would we need more than 183 F-22's to establish air superiority needed to attack ground targets which will keep our men and women's casualty rate down with friends like Russia? I mean, it's not as if the Russians would want to help Iran get a nuke so as to complicate any equation we have or anything right? I mean even if they did, we have a president who would make clear that the NUCLEAR FALLOUT FROM A 'HOT DISPUTE' with such an Iran would be all over southern Russia, right?

FIRST LAW OF RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY:

Anything which hurts the USA and its people -
is good for Russia in the big zero sum great game that doesn't exist.
EVEN IF that means a nuclear detonation in Israel or the USA since they have judged that a full scale nuclear war will not break out.

Look, there is no overt threat in Russia's words...but they live in a 9/10 world, with ideas of the great game of the 19th century, and would probably like to recreate the geographic integrity of 1945, if that outcome becomes available at low cost. This is just one piece of the foreign policy puzzle. But every piece is moving towards us, and the largest SINGLE part of the reason is Iran. Backed CLEARLY, tactically and strategically by both Russia and China, who use the UN far more deftly as a delaying tool, while we pretend they have some real function over there.

Mr. Obama is, judging by his available words and actions, blind, deaf, and dumb and in a different reality in which he thinks Russia, China and others would really go off and farm, bringing horns of plenty to the poor in the 3rd world if we could just sit down and have dinner with them a few more times.

Norkland could be solved in a month with Chinese help.
Iran would be totally introspective if they could not get help with centrifuges, SU's, Migs, Kilos, Shkval's, Ksh-55's, and S-300 AND S-400's (you better believe that last). And ASSURANCES that this help is strategically advantageous to Russia, and to a smaller degree China. Syria, Hizballah, and HAMAS might find life much more difficult if Iranian resources went into developing weapons they could not buy, and could not be sure would help them.

In short, the strategic decision by Russia to help Iran as they do, has OBVIOUS effects, and all of them bring danger to the USA and our allies. That is why they do it. While Mr. Obama dreams of better world, they cannot conceive of it, and believe such thoughts naive.

These thoughts and conclusions about Russia, China and Iran seem to me, self evident, let alone obvious. Yet even a man like Bush acted as if he were mired in low quality oatmeal.

The NIE is iconic of the problem.

Have the hired hands in state and defense taken over control from the people and their representatives?