Russia playing a double game with Iran or just hustling Israel ? Or playing a double game with both at the same time - can you trust a man who ran the KGB anyway ? Does Israel care one way or the other what Putin thinks as it has its own game plan ?

http://www.debka.com/article/22126/Putin-to-Israel-Iran-won-t-get-a-nuclear-bomb-No-need-for-an-Israeli-strike

Putin to Israel: Iran won't get a nuclear bomb. No need for an Israeli strike

DEBKAfile Exclusive Report June 25, 2012, 10:06 PM (GMT+02:00)

Tags:  Vladimir Putin   Israel   Binyamin Netanyahu   Iran nuclear   US 

Vladimir Putin in Jerusalem

The high point of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s noteworthy 90-minute talk with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem Monday, June 25, was Putin’s firm assertion that Iran will not get a nuclear bomb. This is disclosed exclusively by DEBKAfile’s Jerusalem and Moscow sources.
He also dismissed reports that the third round in Moscow of six-power talks with Iran (June 18-19) led nowhere, stressing they were serious and substantial. The next round taking place in Istanbul on July for technical discussions is, according to the Russian president, of prime importance. For the first time, he explained, the nuclear negotiations with Iran will get down to the core issues and would therefore of greater significance  than the “Ashton-Jalili” sessions.
(He was referring to European foreign executive Catherine Ashton who chairs the negotiations and Saeed Jalili, senior Iranian negotiator.)
Putin corrected the general impression that Russia has confined itself to the role of passive bystander in the bargaining with Iran: Quite the reverse, he said: Moscow has been proactively working for accord behind the scenes and its “input” to the process “is considerable.”
Although the word “intelligence” was not mentioned, it was clearly intimated by the Russian visitor when he said, “We [Russians] know more about what is going on with regard to Iran’s (nuclear) capabilities than the Americans.”
It was Putin’s way to scoff at Israel for investing so much time and strategic assets in endless wrangling over how to handle the Iranian threat with American security, military and intelligence chiefs, when the Netanyahu government would be better served by sparing a fraction of that time for talking to Moscow.

In conclusion, he stressed to Netanyahu that it was unnecessary for Israel to use military force against Iran’s nuclear program. Israel knows exactly how much Russia has done to prevent Iran building a nuclear weapon,” he said. “A nuclear weapon in Iranian hands would be contrary to Russian interests, and so it will not get one,”  he stressed.

and does Israel care about what Putin thinks one way or the other ......

October Surprise: Will Israel Attack Iran Before the Election?

Kurt Nimmo
Infowars.com
June 25, 2012

On Saturday, the Israeli newspaper Haartez reported a senior Israeli official as saying Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to attack Iran prior to the elections in the U.S.

“U.S. defense contracts, an Iranian F-16 acquisition, and Israel’s new military preparations suggest that all sides are getting ready for whatever may come,” Haaretz wrote, citing a report posted by Business Insider.

Business Insider and Haaretz did not venture to speculate when Israel would launch an attack.

On Sunday, Michael Carmichaelsuggested the attack would occur during the Democrat national convention.

“Military experts have long agreed that the ‘sweet spot’ for an Israeli attack on Iran will be this coming September or October precisely because of the timing of the US presidential election cycle,” Carmichael explains.

“For maximum political impact and minimal diplomatic responsiveness, the time of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, NC – September 3-6 comes within this window of opportunity as well as the days immediately prior to the US election – say from Halloween till the 6th of November.”

Carmichael notes that elections have played an instrumental role in military activities. He mentions Israel’s Operation Cast Lead and argues it was timed to coincide with the transition between Obama and Bush and ended abruptly immediately before the Inauguration in January 2009. He also mentions the Tet Offensive in early 1968 that removed LBJ from the race for the White House.

In May, Jeffrey Goldberg wrote that Netanyahu has settled political differences within his ruling coalition and this makes an attack more likely.

On Thursday, Israel said a military strike is more likely now that talks between Iran and the West on Iran’s nuclear program have failed.

“I don’t want to pretend to set timelines for the world,” said Defense Minister Ehud Barak about a new round of sanctions imposed on Iran, “but we have said loud and clear that it cannot be a matter of weeks but it (also) cannot be a matter of years.”

Russian president Vladimir Putin’s visit to Israel today underscores the seriousness of the situation. Putin is to meet with Netanyahu and other Israeli officials to talk about Iran and Syria. Russia opposes any military response to Iran’s nuclear program.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week on Russian television that in order to settle the Iranian issue, “it’s necessary to refrain from constant threats of using force, abandon scenarios aimed against Iran and stop dismissing the talks as failure.”