A UK General Election?
There was never going to be a bloody election – todays ‘Brown bottles out’ story, that the media and Westminster insiders are all chattering and plotting and gosiping about and enjoying so much, is as usual just so much smoke and mirrors to obscure what Brown’s really up to.
According to the report by Tim Shipman, “Pentagon officials have revealed that President Bush won an understanding with Gordon Brown in July that Britain would support air strikes if they could be justified as a counter-terrorist operation. Since then discussions about what Britain might contribute militarily, to combat Iranian retaliation that would follow US air strikes, have been held between ministers and officials in the Pentagon and the Ministry of Defence.”
The report follows up another report Friday by The Daily Mail.
“What’s on the table right now is tactical strikes,” Vincent Cannistraro, intelligence chief on Ronald Reagan’s National Security Council and erstwhile head of operations for the CIA’s counter-terrorist center, told Shipman.
“The British Government is in accord with plans to launch limited strikes on facilities inside Iran, on the basis of counter-terrorism.” While the US Air Force and naval jets could carry out raids without help from the RAF, the Pentagon is keen to have the Royal Navy’s cooperation in the event of an attack, to prevent Iran from sowing mines in the Gulf to block oil exports in retaliation,” he added.
Downing Street wouldn’t comment on the story,
Well, it wouldn’t, would it?
UPDATE
Actually Downing St did comment, to the China Daily:
A Downing Street spokesman said, “While we won’t comment on the specifics of conversations between the Prime Minister and the President of the United States, this is not a version of events we recognize.”
Which means precisely nothing. A typically Brownian non-denying denial.
