“The missile threat from Iran is very real, and we must stay ahead of the threat… That’s why we’re working so hard with all our allies to put the most optimized, effective, anti-missile capabilities in place.”-Henry Obering, Lieutenant General, Pentagon Missile Defense Agency

U.S. European Command (EUCOM) has deployed to Israel an X-band radar system along with thousands of U.S. personnel.

Recently Israeli military officials said sanctions are ineffective against Iran, and action must be taken: “The international front against Iran is weak and not consolidated, and isn’t putting enough pressure on the regime to stop enriching uranium….The sanctions have very little influence and are far from bringing to bear a critical mass of pressure on Iran.”-Yossi Baidatz, Brigadier General, Israeli Military Intelligence

The U.S. troop deployment to Israel is part of the largest ever joint war games between Israel and the United States.  The Jerusalem Post quotes U.S. Lieutenant General Frank Gorenc as saying it’s not just an “exercise” but a “deployment” that will involve “several thousand American soldiers”.

Back in September, 2011, Ilan Biton, a brigadier general in the Israel Air Force reserve, said the United States has long been working with Israel to ensure their militaries could work together: “We advanced tremendously on multiple levels and have developed very impressive cooperation. At the human level, we’ve developed a common language and at the technical level, we’ve put in place the interfaces that allow our systems to speak to one another.”

The DefenseNews revealed that last week U.S. officials considered not reporting the deployment of the radar and U.S. troops to Israel.

I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other.