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Seth Frantzman Profile picture
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9 Nov, 4 tweets, 2 min read
If you want to understand Putin's foreign policy, you have to go back, at least in part, to a time when I was doing a study abroad in Moscow in the summer of 1999; and it also determines how he saw the recent Armenia-Azerbaijan criss jpost.com/international/…
I studied abroad in Mexico, Italy and Russia...later in Israel where I got my PhD. Definitely the White Nights in Petersburg were a highlight in 1999. And a formative time, I witnessed, for Russia.
I never met Putin...but I did meet Chief Rabbi Berl Lazar who has insights; sethfrantzman.com/2014/05/11/int…
If you want to understand him...recall his joke about a son who trades his father's navy knife for a watch;

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More from @sfrantzman

Seth Frantzman Profile picture
11 Nov
Thread: Those who believe the destructive war against poor Armenia was about hurting Iran have bought into the narrative of Ankara entirely...there is zero evidence Iran was harmed by a war that basically harmed Armenians and Azeris...if anything Iran gained again.
The theory that all the minority groups in the Middle East have to be attacked by Ankara and its extremists and that somehow destroying Afrin...Armenia...Sinjar...hurts Iran is built on nonsense and gratuitous support for violence against innocent people.
Notice how the Ankara regime media never critiques Kataib Hezbollah, Hezbollah, Badr or Houthis...none of Iran’s real allies. We are constantly being lied to that Ankara “opposes Iran”...it doesn’t. It is allied with Iran and Russia.
Read 17 tweets
Seth Frantzman Profile picture
10 Nov
Two bits of #Israeli defense news today: "The United States Air Force has selected Elbit Systems of America to compete for future task orders within the service’s Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) Indefinite-Delivery/Indefinite-Quantity (ID/IQ) contract."
"The Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO), in the Directorate of Defense R&D (DDR&D), of the Israel Ministry of Defense, delivered to the U.S. Army the first Multi-Mission Radars (MMR) manufactured by ELTA Systems, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI)."
Why these two details are interesting is the illustration of the close US-Israel defense relationship, one has to think of this as an ECOSYSTEM where Israel increasingly is a part of and fits into the US defense industry through procurement, partnerships and supplying key items
Read 5 tweets
Seth Frantzman Profile picture
8 Nov
It seems logical only on the face of it.

A. If Iran's regime was so peaceful, then no one would need security at all...but they do because Iran's regime has an agenda.

B. The regime's arrogance of "forever"...ummm it's a regime...regimes come and go, read history... Image
This feels like a bit of mafia "you better pay us for security...don't rely on others...or bad things might happen" aspect to it...threatening...under the guise of "better future"...from a regime that daily threatens Israel and others.
The arrogance of Zarif, who was educated in the US...the country the regime complains about...to pretend he is Iran and "forever"...he only has his Twitter account to say this and his job because of the regime...that's not "forever"...
Read 9 tweets
Seth Frantzman Profile picture
3 Nov
It's so fascinating how we were told by a small crowd of extreme anti-Iran/pro-Turkey voices that we are supposed to support Turkey against poor Armenia because "Armenia is allied with Iran"...when Iran again and again says it supports Azerbaijan retaking Nagorna-Karabakh.
There is a small little group of people who believe in the myth that Turkey is "against Iran" and "allied with the US and Israel" (it isn't), the fact is Turkey and Iran are often on the same side, such as with Hamas, or Nagorna-Karabkah issue, or on Jerusalem issue, France etc
The fact is that a few in the US who supported Ankara without question have empowered Iran and Russia...oddly, they have got the exact opposite of what they claimed...Their support of Turkey never weakened Iran or Russia...in the opposite.
Read 5 tweets
Seth Frantzman Profile picture
2 Nov
If you see analysis of the Middle East that talks about authoritarian states and only mentions Saudi Arabia and Egypt, what you’re reading is an information op that purposely ignores a whole series of other countries from Turkey to Qatar, Iran etc; it’s purposeful.
No one can do an analysis of the Middle East and pretend that “authoritarianism” is a problem in Egypt and Saudi Arabia and not mention the rest of the region...totally ignoring Hamas in Gaza, Assad’s regime...and most of the other countries.
And you can’t go this route of “well this is a criticism of US allies”...because Turkey and Qatar are allies and they are authoritarian...and you can’t pretend it’s only those with a “growing” authoritarianism...because they doesn’t work either.
Read 5 tweets
Seth Frantzman Profile picture
31 Oct
So according to politico any country that wants to be secular and critique religion somehow deserves to be targeted? Odd. So one is allowed to have countries with extreme enforced religious theocracy... not “extreme secularism”...secularists don’t carry our attacks the other way
There is no such thing as “blasphemy”...the second you use this term you accept its terms. Some places used to burn people at the stake and carry out witch trials. Claiming that this is acceptable because of “blasphemy” means one accepts it
What if one day some religion claims smiling is “blasphemy” will we all have to stop smiling or we will be told it “offended” people and they have a “right to terror”?
Read 6 tweets

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