Israel and Kazakhstan to hold joint military exercises

Israel and Kazakhstan to hold joint military exercises

If you don’t think this is interesting, you might want to look at a map.  (See below.)  Anything that may involve Israeli aircraft – military aircraft, or aircraft bearing military or military cargo – flying into Central Asia bears noting, of course.  The new defense cooperation pact between the two countries will include weapons sales as well.

The Bug Pit summary reminds us of a previous instance of military cooperation between Israel and Kazakhstan in 2006-7.  Kazakh officials were charged with corruption in connection with some of the consequences of deals from the period.

But good relations between the countries have continued, and in September 2013, Israel launched her “largest and most sophisticated” communications satellite from the Baikonur cosmodrome in southern Kazakhstan (still operated as a base for the Russian space program).

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In 2012, Israel and Azerbaijan signed a $1.6 billion arms agreement (which, of course, would also entail flying things from Israel to Azerbaijan).  Indeed, any Israeli economic agreement with the Central Asian nations – for manufacturing or infrastructure development, not just for the sale of arms – would involve a transportation pipeline.

That Russia doesn’t seem inclined to try to block these connections is a reminder that Russian and Iran find each other useful, but are hardly joined at the hip.  Russia is happy to have potential leverage over Iran, in whatever form it may present itself.

Google map; author annotation
Google map; author annotation
J.E. Dyer

J.E. Dyer

J.E. Dyer is a retired Naval Intelligence officer who lives in Southern California, blogging as The Optimistic Conservative for domestic tranquility and world peace. Her articles have appeared at Hot Air, Commentary’s Contentions, Patheos, The Daily Caller, The Jewish Press, and The Weekly Standard.

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