Epstein Secrets

he US broke the habit of more than 30 years and sat down to talk to each other. Know your enemy is a first rule of diplomacy — and of intelligence. John Kerry has his detractors but, unlike his predecessor Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state understands that serious diplomacy demands a willingness

a broadening of the issues on the table could give the Saudis a chance to make their voice heard -- but few expect them to change their tune. "When Kerry went to Saudi Arabia [earlier this month], they told him in no uncertain terms that they're against any deal being cut, any lifting of the sanction

ent threat. European agencies are more relaxed, suggesting Tehran is still two years or so away from a weapon. Western diplomats broadly agree that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has not taken a definitive decision to step over the line. What Iran has been seeking is what diplomats call a breakout capability — the capacity t

a backlash in the midst of the Iran nuclear negotiations, walked the revelation back, but not very far. Just a few days earlier, Secretary of State John F. Kerry, in Israel trying to keep peace talks afloat, reiterated the U.S. view in an interview: "We do not believe the settlements are legitimate. We think

ran tangible evidence that they will become tighter and more painful. As for whether Israel was kept in the dark about Geneva, an inconsistency in Kerry's comments suggests there is something to it. After all, he and other officials have said that Israeli leaders have been continually and fully brie

its behavior has been ruthlessly rational for the most part. Even Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini -- a far more committed ideologue than his successor, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei -- agreed to end the Iran-h War in 1988 when his subordinates told him that continuing the conflict would only result in further Iraqi victories a

Syria Lakhdar Brahimi has privately and publicly lobbied Western and Arab countries to allow Iran into the Geneva process. While Secretary of State John Kerry has said that Tehran could play some role in settling the Syria crisis, it is unrealistic to expect Iran's leaders to be a positive force when they

the Geneva process. While Secretary of State John Kerry has said that Tehran could play some role in set

would not be appropriate for an effective military strategy and that they would violate the principles of the Islamic Republic. The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at one point issued a fatwa to this effect. US intelligence concluded in 2007 and has reaffirmed twice since that while Iran continued to enrich u

specting Your Defender Gershom Gorenberg March 24, 2014 -- Moshe Ya'alon thinks that President Barack Obama is a wimp and that Secretary of State John Kerry is mentally incompetent. If Ya'alon were a GOP senator, this wouldn't be worthy of comment. He'd be doing what has come to be the job of Republican

r charm offensive. In January, the mass-circulation daily Yediot Aharonot published leaks from conversations in which the defense minister attacked Kerry's efforts to negotiate a two-state agreement in general, and in particular his proposal for security arrangements between Israel and the Palestinia

ader in the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing. This long overdue visit will culminate in Meshaal meeting with Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In his meeting with Meshaal and in his recent and first visit to Qatar, Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ramadan Shalah discussed the details of t

9 The latest round of peace negotiations, or rather, negotiations about peace negotiations, has a distinctly hollow ring to it. Secretary of State John Kerry's determination to restart the 'peace process' in any form, regardless of Israel's increasing intransigence, contained more than a hint of desperat

eace negotiations. Israel has appeared somewhat bemused at the enthusiasm of its American ally but it stands to gain little from actively resisting Kerry's initiative. Instead, it has openly declared its willingness to attend negotiations, while simultaneously pursuing a 'business as usual' strategy

cause it is largely impervious to airstrikes, or to dismantle any of its centrifuges. Even if Rouhani signed off, meanwhile, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, could veto the deal. Still, the Obama administration's chief nuclear negotiator, Wendy Sherman, told a Senate panel earlier this month that the W

Syria Lakhdar Brahimi has privately and publicly lobbied Western and Arab countries to allow Iran into the Geneva process. While Secretary of State John Kerry has said that Tehran could play some role in settling the Syria crisis, it is unrealistic to expect Iran's leaders to be a positive force when the

he Geneva process. While Secretary of State John Kerry has said that Tehran could play some role in set

ould not be appropriate for an effective military strategy and that they would violate the principles of the Islamic Republic. The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at one point issued a fatwa to this effect. US intelligence concluded in 2007 and has reaffirmed twice since that while Iran continued to enrich u

ople must starve until, possibly, a caravan of options arrives. "He has asked all of us to think about various options that may or may not exist," John Kerry said while in Beijing. One can only imagine the profound effect this has had in Damascus, where Assad's inner circle must be spending sleepless nig

and political support to President Bashar al-Assad. "They're, in fact, enabling Assad to double down, which is creating an enormous problem," Mr. Kerry said in Jakarta, Indonesia, before he flew EFTA00684588 here to confer with top officials of the United Arab Emirates, a gulf state that has been

y 17, 2014 -- The Geneva Accord between Iran and P5+1 went into effect on January 20, but the debate still rages in Iran. For Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, uranium enrichment is a red line that he will not relinquish. The conservatives view the Accord very negatively, whereas the supporters of Hassan

N inspectors report as providing indisputable evidence of Assad's use of chemical weapons (CW). Echoing the marker laid down by Secretary of State John Kerry, he will demand that the UNSC pass a robust resolution under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, as promised by the terms of the Geneva Agreement. The pre

the marker laid down by Secretary of State John Kerry, he will demand that the UNSC pass a robust reso

end the movement or a faithful son of the Khomeini order who was given leeway by the regime's powers that be. He couldn't defy the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, or run afoul of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard. The case is now being made that Rohani is no freelancer, that he is a player of standing in the

hey, that was then. A second-term president has committed himself early in 2013 to a trip to Israel and has an Energizer bunny in Secretary of State John Kerry, who wants to do the right thing and keep the two-state solution alive. Obama clearly kept his distance from the issue again on Tuesday night. He spo

has an Energizer bunny in Secretary of State John Kerry, who wants to do the right thing and keep the two

ry-general, currently Nasrallah, presides over the Majlis al-Shura and functions as the group's leader under the authority of the "jurist theologian" Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader. Five administrative bodies, organized around thematic responsibilities, run Hezbollah's political, military (jihad), parliame

ent that includes members of a U.S.- designated terrorist movement. As he begins again in the region, Obama will be advised by new Secretary of State John F. Kerry. He has also named former HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_029696 --- PAGE BREAK --- senator Chuck Hagel as defense secretary, a nomination still in question after

ran announced that it will join talks on February 26 in Kazakhstan. The negotiations will be a serious test for the Obama administration and for John Kerry, the new secretary of state. Previous rounds have all faltered because neither side was willing to make HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_029727 --- PAGE BREAK --- c

. Combined with Iranian internal divisions, as its own presidential election season gets underway, that could mean that for the next six months or so Ayatollah Ali Khamenei simply won't be ready to talk seriously, despite scheduling the Kazakhstan round. HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_029729 --- PAGE BREAK --- Others suspect that Ira