Annual Reliant Mermaid naval exercise

Continuing with our exclusive reporting of the secret preparations for a war with Iran, Chinese news disclosed a joint military exercise in the Mediterranean Sea this week.  Although the U.S. military downplayed the report as a scheduled annual exercise to improve search and rescue coordination for humanitarian operations, it included live fire of weapons and tests of the Aegis shipboard RADAR.  Aegis plays a critical role in missile defense and its role in the drill seemed to be suspiciously absent from U.S. and Israel mass media news outlets.  The Navy can make a case for their inclusion, but it appears that the exercise wasn’t for promoting “humanitarian” operations unless now doctrine dictates shooting down missiles and firing naval guns during the evacuation of refugees.

Notably absent this year from the joint exercise was Turkey.  Understandably, relations between Israel and Turkey have not been good and makes for a legitimate reason for their failure to participate.  However, the U.S. could have still conducted independent operations with the Turkish Navy and this was not the case.

We offer another explanation for this drill and Turkey’s absence.  The U.S. and Israel don’t trust Turkey and were rehearsing operations in preparation for a war with Iran.  They don’t want that information to “somehow” get back to Iran.  NATO in particular has known for years that Turkey has been playing both sides in the escalating Iran conflict and according to many reports, has not only passed sensitive military secrets to Iran, but allowed Iran to move weapons and equipment through its airspace in support of Syria.  Turkey’s questionable loyalties may have been the real reason operations excluded them this year.  Further, the use of Aegis RADAR is a clear signal that this exercise was more about missile defense than humanitarian anything.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-08/20/c_131795059.htm

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/159039

By Guiles Hendrik