Israel Accuses Turkey of Selling Electronic Equipment to Iran

Moshe Kahlon the Finance Minister of Israel via AAWSAT AR.
Moshe Kahlon the Finance Minister of Israel via AAWSAT AR.
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Israel Accuses Turkey of Selling Electronic Equipment to Iran

Moshe Kahlon the Finance Minister of Israel via AAWSAT AR.
Moshe Kahlon the Finance Minister of Israel via AAWSAT AR.

Political circles in Israel leaked a confidential intelligence report accusing Turkey of selling electronic equipment to Iran, by the time efforts are being made behind the scenes to identify the diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Israel and to prevent its expansion.

The report is a letter sent by Israeli government to the United Nations, lately, requesting an investigation into "the arrival of sophisticated electronic products in Iran, contrary to UN Security Council resolutions that imposed restrictions on Iranian armament."

The letter said that suspicions revolve around Turkey for allegedly selling electronic equipment to Iran that appears on the list of banned materials for export to the Iran under UN Security Council Resolution 2231 of 2015, prohibiting transfer to Iran of nuclear-related products and technologies.

The UN also contacted Israel seeking it open its own inquiry into the matter after it discovered the equipment sold by Turkey to Iran was manufactured by a Jerusalem-based Israeli company, considered a major manufacturer of electronic capacitors.

The government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) led to the investigation being opened after it intercepted a shipment of electronics sent by Turkey to Iran in July, 2017, according to sources.
The UAE's security apparatus noticed the shipment contained the aforementioned capacitors.

In the written missive sent to Israel, the UN's Secretariat noted that the electronic items were made by an Israeli company called Celem Power Capacitors, headquartered in Jerusalem.

The contraband shipment contained CSP 180/300 model capacitors manufactured by the Israeli company.

"We'll be grateful if your government can provide pertinent information on the matter forthwith," the Secretariat's letter said.

The company further maintained that it had no notion of the capacitors being sent on to Iran.

"We will cooperate with any inquiry," Celem's statement said. "We'll prove we sold them to an orderly Turkish company. We don't do business with enemy states."

"While most of our sales are to Europe and the US, Turkey is not an enemy state and there's no reason not to trade with it. In any event, if the shipment did find its way to Iran, the Turkish buyer misled us," the statement concluded.



South Korea Completes Missile Interceptor to Counter Any Threat from North

North Korea's Kaephung county is seen from the observatory of the Aegibong Peace Ecopark in Gimpo, South Korea, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
North Korea's Kaephung county is seen from the observatory of the Aegibong Peace Ecopark in Gimpo, South Korea, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
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South Korea Completes Missile Interceptor to Counter Any Threat from North

North Korea's Kaephung county is seen from the observatory of the Aegibong Peace Ecopark in Gimpo, South Korea, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
North Korea's Kaephung county is seen from the observatory of the Aegibong Peace Ecopark in Gimpo, South Korea, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

South Korea said on Friday it had completed development of a new ballistic missile interceptor, adding a further layer to defense systems deployed to protect against missile threats from neighboring North Korea.
The move comes after the North designated South Korea a "hostile state" and no longer a partner in the goal of unification, breaking from decades of policy and dramatically escalating tension with hostile rhetoric throughout the year.
The Long-range Surface-to-Air Missile (LSAM) is designed to intercept incoming ballistic missiles or aircraft at altitudes higher than 40 km (25 miles) in the terminal phase of its descent, the defense ministry said.
Ten years in development, the L-SAM will become operational in the mid- to late 2020s after mass production begins in 2025, the ministry added in a statement.
"This is a cutting-edge weapon that intercepts enemy missiles at high altitudes to minimise damage on land, expanding our military's missile defense capabilities to higher altitudes and wider areas," it said.
The new addition will augment the US Patriot missile and indigenous Cheongung II medium-range interceptor, both currently operational, the South's Agency for Defense Development (ADD) said.
Like the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, which South Korea hosts, L-SAM uses the "hit-to-kill" maneuver, relying on advanced technology to fine-tune its flight to strike incoming enemy targets, the ministry said.
North Korea has tested a range of ballistic missiles in the past five years, steadily advancing its arsenal, including shorter-range missiles designed to strike targets in South Korea, which Pyongyang has designated a "primary foe."