| This just in from InfoProd Global NewsWire (a service of the Financial Times) for 1/16/03:
"Foreign Ministry spokesman Aleksandr Yakovenko announced on 14 January that Moscow and Damascus have reached an accord under which Russia will assist in the construction of a nuclear-power plant and a nuclear-powered desalination plant in Syria, gazeta.ru and other Russian news agencies reported. Although Yakovenko did not reveal the value of the agreement, experts estimate that it could be as much as $ 2 billion, gazeta.ru reported. Moscow's decision to provide such technology to Syria will no doubt irritate Israel, which has territorial disputes with Damascus, the website commented. These projects and other Russian initiatives in the region -- including the actual and proposed construction of several nuclear reactors in Iran -- will mean that there will be from eight to 10 nuclear plants in the Middle East. This will tie Israel's hands in the event that it seeks to conduct any military operations in the region and could complicate the Israeli-Arab conflict, gazeta.ru argued. The presidential press service announced that President Putin was expected to meet in Moscow on 15 January with Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam, who will bring a special message from Syrian President Bashir Assad, RIA-Novosti reported. It was expected the talks would focus on the Iraq conflict."
--> Think Israel's going to exercise it's Phantom veto over these? I know the Bushehr reactors are much further along, but Syria is much closer and is a much more immediate threat to Israel than Iran.
--Phoenix Rising |
