This is the DEFCON Warning System. Alert status for 8 P.M., Thursday, October 13th, 2016. Condition code is Yellow. DEFCON 3.
Tensions between Russia and the United States have reached levels beyond the cold war in the recent week.
The situation between Russia and the United States is extremely fluid at the moment. In all likelihood as dynamic as at times during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Mainstream media has taken a very serious tone concerning the change from diplomatic to military options between NATO and Russia. CNN stated, “It’s not a new Cold War. It’s not even a deep chill. It’s an outright conflict.†On October 10th Former Soviet Premier Gorbachev is quoted as saying, “I think the world has reached a dangerous point.â€â€¨â€¨There are signs of a potential growing large scale conflict in nearly every geopolitical hotspot including Syria, Yemen, Ukraine, and the Philippines. Syria is seen as one of the trigger points to the renewed tensions between the United States and Russia. The United States has also accused Russia of a cyberattack and meddling with the US Presidential Election. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest promised on Tuesday that the U.S. would deliver a “proportional†response to Russia’s alleged hacking of American computer systems. The US and Britain are also expected to weigh into Syrian military options on Friday. This could increase tensions between the two superpowers to a greater extent.
Moreover, Houthi rebels on the South Coast of Yemen fired one anti-ship missile at the U.S.S. Mason on Sunday, and another on Wednesday. The Pentagon responded by firing 5 TLAM missiles at radar stations inside Yemen. Around this same time, Iran dispatched a fleet of ships to the area. The U.S.S. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group has also been dispatched to the area.
At this time, the DEFCON Warning System feels that an increase to DEFCON 3 would be a prudent move. The situation is currently fluid with diplomatic ties strained and military threats coming from both sides. Russian media is reportedly telling its citizens to prepare for nuclear war. Russia has recently conducted civil defense drills and completed inspections of underground areas to house government officials and some civilians in the event of nuclear war. This is a very sensitive situation which has the potential to spiral out of control. It is recommended that all citizens learn the steps to be taken in the event of nuclear war. We will continue to bring updated information as we receive it.
The DEFCON Warning System is an analytical reporting organization which focuses on nuclear threats against the United States and offers an alert code to the public based on current events. It is not affiliated with any government agency and does not represent the alert status of any military branch. The public should make their own evaluations and not rely on the DEFCON Warning System for any strategic planning. At all times, citizens are urged to learn what steps to take in the event of a nuclear attack.
If this had been an actual attack, the DEFCON Warning System will give radiation readings for areas that are reported to it. Your readings will vary. Official news sources will have radiation readings for your area.
For immediate updates, go to http://www.defconwarningsystem.com. Breaking news and important information can be found on the DEFCON Warning System message board and on the DEFCON Twitter feed DEFCONWS. You may also subscribe to the YouTube channel DefconWarningSystem and the DEFCON Warning System mailing list. Note that Twitter and YouTube updates may be subject to delays. The next scheduled update is 6 P.M. Pacific Time, October 20th, 2016. Additional updates will be made as the situation warrants, with more frequent updates at higher alert levels.
This concludes this broadcast of the DEFCON Warning System.
Russia
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Senior diplomats from the West and the Middle East are meeting in the Austrian capital Vienna in an effort to salvage efforts to halt Syria’s civil war.
John Kerry, US secretary of state, and Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, will chair the meeting on Tuesday.
At the gathering, the 17-nation International Syria Support Group (ISSG) will renew its call for a national cessation of hostilities and immediate humanitarian access to besieged communities.
But the third plank of the plan – a call for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime and the rebels to agree on a “framework for political transition” – may cause headaches.
US officials travelling with Kerry say the US still insists that Assad should go, with an August 1 deadline for settling on the framework under which he does so.
But Assad, buoyed by military support from Russia and Iran, has shown no sign he is prepared to leave and his forces are still battling for territory.
“There’s a sentiment here in Vienna that it may take some time to bridge the gap between the two key players,” said Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Vienna.
“We’ve been talking to members of the Syrian opposition, They say they have lost trust. If they don’t get clarity about Assad, they wont sign anything.”
Little headway
UN-brokered peace talks in Geneva ended last month without any progress after the delegation of the opposition walked out, citing surging attacks by Assad’s forces and his Russian ally, as well as problems with humanitarian aid shipments.
In the past weeks, more than 300 people have been killed in regime air strikes in Aleppo province alone, while deadly fighting has also raged in other parts of Syria, including Idlib, Deir Az Zor and outskirts of Damascus.
A truce deal in place since February does not cover the armed groups such as Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group and al-Nusra Front, al-Qaeda’s Syria branch.
While the Syrian opposition demands that the president step down and pave the way for a political transition, the government delegation in Geneva has so far refused to talk about such a scenario.
Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iranian foreign minister, said his country supported the truce and a peace dialogue, but he warned that a silencing of arms might aid armed groups operating in Syria.
“We should not allow terrorists to use the cessation of hostilities for further terror operations,” he said.
Russia, Assad’s key foreign backer, supports the ISSG platform on paper but backs Syrian government forces on the ground.
Russia nevertheless endorsed the UN Security Council resolution that enshrined the ISSG peace plan in international law – and Lavrov says he supports it.
Rebel offensive
The talks come as fighter jets from the US-led coalition continue their attack on ISIL targets in Aleppo, while moderate rebels have launched their own offensive on the ground.
Meanwhile, a government air strike in the city left at least three civilians dead early on Tuesday, among them a mother and her young daughter, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Government forces continue to blockade several rebel-held areas around Damascus, stopping all food and medical aid in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions.
And ISIL and the al-Nusra Front, not party to the ceasefire or peace talks, still hold vast swaths of the country and carry out attacks.
In Bdama, in Idlib province in the northwest, large swathes of which are held by al-Nusra, government air raids left eight civilians dead, including four women and three children.
Fighting has also broken out between al-Nusra Front and other factions, killing more than 300 fighters in recent weeks.
Official Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/05/world-powers-gather-vienna-resume-syria-talks-160517081357389.html
Russia is preparing to test-fire a nuclear weapon which is so powerful it could reportedly destroy a whole country in seconds.
The “Satan 2” missile is rumoured to be the most powerful ever designed and is equipped with stealth technology to help it dodge enemy radar systems .
This terrifying doomsday weapon is likely to strike fear into the hearts of Western military chiefs, as current missile defence technology is totally incapable of stopping it.
Its official name is the RS-28 Sarmat and it will replace aging Soviet R-36M missiles, which NATO military experts nicknamed “Satan”.
“In this sense, the Sarmat missile will not only become the R-36M’s successor, but also to some extent it will determine in which direction nuclear deterrence in the world will develop,” the Russian news network Zvezda reported .
The missile is expected to be capable of delivering up to a dozen warheads, allowing to effectively destroy an area the “size of Texas or France”, the broadcaster continued.
It is expected to have a range of 10,000 km, allowing Moscow to attack European cities including London as well as major cities on America’s west and east coasts.
Russia is said to be planning to test fire the weapon this summer, although it is unclear whether it will be fitted with its full nuclear payload.
The missiles will then be in active service at some point before 2020.
Official Source: http://www.mirror.co.uk/tech/russia-test-unstoppable-satan-2-7935675
China has allegedly tested a weapon of mass destruction capable of hitting London and other major European or American cities in just 30 minutes.
The People’s Republic reportedly fired a nuke called the Dongfeng-41, which has the longest range of any missile in the world.
It can carry up to 10 warheads over a distance of roughly 7,450 miles in just half an hour before hitting several targets at once.
This would mean Beijing could destroy the whole of London – which is slightly more than 5,000 miles from the Chinese capital – or wipe out any city in the West.
World facing nuclear war?
Pentagon sources told the Washington Beacon that the nuke had been detected by American satellites.
The development is likely to make American military chiefs extremely nervous.
Previous reports have indicated the Dongfeng-41 could be operational at some point during 2016.
Mark Stokes, an expert on the Chinese military and ex-Pentagon analyst, said: “China and Russia are increasingly coordinating their military forces against the United States and that China’s program of enabling North Korea and Iran to become nuclear missile powers is nearing completion.”
A number of states near China are now armed with weapons of mass destruction.
North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un now has nuclear weapons – and could soon be able to target America and Japan.
Kim, 33, was recently pictured standing next to what was thought to be a miniaturised weapon.
Miniaturisation is achieved when the nuclear warhead weighs less than 2,200 lb and the diameter of the bomb measures 35 inches or less.
Inside nuclear bunker converted into a HOUSE:
It is feared North Korea now had between eight and 20 miniaturised warheads.
The claims came as the US senate was warned it is only a matter of time before Kim had long-range missiles capable of hitting America and Japan.
General Vincent Brooks told the Armed Services Committee that Kim was determined to build rockets which could target the US.
He said: “Over time, I believe we’re going to see them acquire these capabilities if they’re not stopped.”
Senator John McCain, who chairs the committee, asked how concerned he was about the “immaturity and unpredictability of the rotund ruler in Pyongyang”.
General Brooks replied: “I’m very concerned about the direction he’s going, and it’s evident that he’s not yet deterred from his pursuit.”
The US has 28,500 troops in South Korea. They have kept a military presence there since the end of the Korean War in 1953.
The two Koreas technically remain at war, as the conflict ended in an armistice instead of a peace treaty.
China supported the North in the Korean War but has become increasingly exasperated by the antics of Kim, who came to power after the death of his father Kim Jong-il in 2011.
Pyongyang last week conducted a test of what appeared to be a medium-range missile, but the rocket suffered a catastrophic failure on launch.
Washington and Seoul may deploy the Theater High Altitude Area Defense System (THAAD), to protect against ballistic missiles from the North.
South Korea pointed out that it took the US seven years to miniaturise a nuclear warhead in the 1960’s while the Soviet Union took six and China only two years.
North Korea is thought to be planning another nuclear test in the run-up to its Party Congress on May 7. Some experts believe Kim’s missiles have a longer range than previously assessed.
The test this month revealed the KN-08 first stage uses Musudan rather than No Dong engines, along with a more capable fuel.
That means the KN-08 would be able to reach throughout the US, including New York City and Washington, rather than only the Pacific Northwest.
Official Source: http://www.mirror.co.uk/tech/china-tests-terrifyingly-powerful-dongfeng-7803132
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu held a visit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Thursday, where Netanyahu clarified that keeping the Golan Heights in Israeli hands is a “red line.”
At the start of their meeting, Netanyahu thanked Putin for the visit, saying “I very much appreciate your warm hosting, and I very much appreciate the ongoing contact between us.”
“I came here with one central goal – to strengthen the security coordination between us in order to prevent mishaps, misunderstands, unnecessary crashes,” he said, referring to how the Russian military is currently operating near Israel in Syria to prop up Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Netanyahu noted that in their last meeting he presented Israel’s security policy on the northern border, explaining, “Israel has clear red lines for self-defense needs.”
“First, we act as best as we can in order to prevent a transfer of advanced weapons from Iran and Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Secondly, we act in order to prevent the establishment of an additional terror front against us from the Golan Heights. These are red lines, and we will continue to protect them.”
The Prime Minister focused in on the Golan Heights, which has been in the news this week after on Sunday he held the first Cabinet meeting there since the region was liberated in the 1967 Six Day War. His meeting sparked an international backlash of condemnation, and in it he vowed that the Golan would always remain Israeli.
“Regarding the Golan Heights, we will not return to the days when they fired on our towns and our children from the peaks of the Golan,” Netanyahu told Putin on Thursday.
“Therefore, with an agreement or without an agreement, the Golan Heights will remain under Israeli sovereignty.”
Netanyahu’s declaration on the Golan Heights on Sunday led to condemnation from the EU, the US State Department, the Syrian regime which threatened to conquer the region militarily, and the Arab League which called to establish a special court against Israel on the matter. Netanyahu did however receive backing from Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz.
Passover in Moscow
In his meeting with Putin, Netanyahu noted that the visit was a chance to discuss bilateral issues even as the two sides mark 25 years of bilateral ties.
He particularly made mention of the matter of pensions for Israelis who immigrated from Russia, an issue which he said he hopes will be closed soon to provide aid for those who are eligible for a pension from Russia given their years of working there.
“I also want to thank you for the wishes on the Passover holiday,” said Netanyahu. “This is our holiday of freedom, and on the holiday all of the house of Israel will sit at the seder table including over a million Russian-speaking Israelis who are a living connection between our peoples.”
“I also would like to wish the Jews of Russia and all the house of Israel around the world a happy Passover holiday. I want to thank you again for your friendship, which is important for the interests of both our peoples.”
Netanyahu in his one-day Moscow visit was accompanied by Minister Ze’ev Elkin (Likud), the Israeli Air Force (IAF) commander, the deputy head of the National Security Council (NSC), the military secretary and the bureau chief.
The meeting follows a meeting between Putin and Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran’s Quds Force special ops unit responsible for managing terror missions worldwide, against UN sanctions – as well as the early stages of Iran receiving the S-300 anti-aircraft missile system from Russia.
Official Source: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/211253#.Vxkc7_krLx8
The resolution, adopted by the UN cultural agency’s 58-nation executive board last week, condemns the Israeli government’s stewardship of Jerusalem and decries the renovation of “so-called Jewish ritual baths” and the alleged creation of “Jewish fake graves.”
Sites are either referred to by their Arabic or English names or, in the case of the Western Wall Plaza, the holiest site where Jews can pray, are put in quotes.
The Israeli government described the resolution, which was voted for by 33 countries, as “hideous” and penned letters to all countries that signed the resolution, which included France, Russia and China.
“The UNESCO resolution has no practical validity. Nevertheless, we will not permit international entities to blur the Jewish people’s connection to its eternal capital.” Dore Gold, director general of the country’s foreign minister said in a statement on Thursday.
The United Kingdom and the US abstained from the vote.
Official Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/04/outrage-israel-unesco-resolution-jerusalem-160421162641624.html
Iran has received a batch of S-300 long-range, surface-to-air missile systems from Russia, the Iranian Foreign Ministry has said.
In a recorded statement broadcast on state television on Monday, Jaber Ansari, spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, told a news conference that the “first phase of this [delayed] contract has been implemented”.
“The first batch of Russia’s S-300 air defence missile systems has arrived in Iran,” he was quoted as saying.
Ansari was replying to reporters’ questions about videos on social media showing what appeared to be parts of an S-300 missile system on trucks in northern Iran.
In February, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported that Moscow planned to soon send its first delivery of S-300 missile systems to Tehran.
That report said the systems would be transported from the southern Russian city of Astrakhan via a direct water route through the Caspian Sea to Iran.
Russia and Iran signed a contract to deliver several S-300 missile systems in 2007, but Moscow cancelled the deal because of United Nations sanctions against supplying weapons to the Islamic republic.
RIA Novosti reported that the deal had been worth about $900m.
Last year, Iran reached an international agreement on regulating its nuclear programme to remove sanctions, and Russian President Vladimir Putin then signed a decree to allow his country to sell weapons to
Iran.
Official Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/04/iran-receives-advanced-missile-system-russia-160411131008684.html
Embattled Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s key ally, Russian President Vladimir Putin, may be preparing to turn his back on the Syrian president.
According to the Al-Hayat pan-Arab newspaper in London, Russia has agreed to a long-standing demand of Syrian opposition forces that Assad be removed from power.
The report comes as negotiators representing Syrian rebels refused to consider even a transitional role for Assad in a proposed unity government.
Asaad al-Zoabi, one of the negotiators, insisted that “Assad should not remain for even one hour after the formation” of a transitional government.
The Al-Hayat report cites a diplomat in the UN Security Council who leaked the basic outline of the agreement.
While the US and Russia have agreed on the principle that Assad should be removed from power and sent into exile outside of Syria, no specifics regarding the implementation of the plan have been determined.
Earlier this month, Russia abruptly announced it would withdraw its military forces from Syria, much to the surprise of international observers.
On March 17th a senior Russian general told to Pravda newspaper that the pullout would be completed within days.
Official Source: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/210142#.Vv1VA-IrLx8