Putin Gets Slapped Badly - By Iran!!

Russia’s Vladimir Putin just suffered a major setback in the Middle East…delivered by no less than Iran’s Supreme leader, the Ayatollah Khamenei.

A few days ago, there was a news story out that sent a shock through the foreign policy establishment here in the U.S. and elsewhere, that Russia would now base a squadron of its Tupolev 22M3 heavy bombers and support aircraft in Iran’s Nojef airbase. This was, of course, a huge game changer and Russia’s Foreign ministry proudly trumpeted the news in world media as a major sign of Russian dominance in the region.

Except it wasn’t.

The deal was arranged by Iran’s President Rouhani, who made the mistake of forgetting his place. He summoned the national supreme military council and, without consulting with Khamenei, simply informed them of his decision to make the Nojeh air base available to the Russian air force.

Aside from being angered that Rouhani made this decision without getting an OK from him, Khamenei was reportedly upset that the Russians showed every intent of making the base their permanent turf complete with sophisticate S-300 and S-400 defense systems to protect it. The last thing Khamenei and the ayatollahs want is a base deep in Iran controlled by a foreign country.

Khamenei orchestrated major disapproval from the Majlis, Iran’s version of a parliament that actually does the bidding of the Ayatollah Khamenei and his Council of Guardians. It was more than enough to kill the deal and force the Russians out bag and baggage after just three sorties into Syria.

So the Iranian defense ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi announced in a press conference August 22nd that the Russian mission is over for now, that it was always only a temporary use base on a Russian request.

And if that wasn’t enough of a slap, Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan insulted the Russians openly for “showing off” over the air base in an “ungentlemanly manner” and a “betrayal of trust.”

“We have not given any military base to the Russians and they are not here to stay.”

But wait, there’s more.

The Russians make a fair amount of badly needed cash selling weaponry to other countries,including Iran. The Ayatollah Khamenei wasn’t finished with them yet. He forced President Rouhani to make amends and show who really runs Iran by forcing Rouhani to be photographed posing with an Iranian-made Bavar-373 missile defense system and to tell the press that with this new, home manufactured system, Iran won’t need to purchase any more expensive Russian S-300s, “because the Bavar-373 is just as good.”

The Ayatollah was not just telling the Russians that Iran wouldn’t be buying any more of what they had to sell, but that Iran was going to be further hitting them in the wallet by putting out a competing, less expensive alternative to potential customers.

While I felt I understood why he was doing it, I’ve written before that Vladimir Putin was making a huge mistake making common cause with Iran. It’s the same mistake Stalin made with Hitler,supplying him with oil and other raw materials literally until the day Hitler’s armies attacked him.

What Khamenei was reminding Putin that ‘You’re a useful infidel at present, but you’re still an infidel.’

It’s as simple as that.