"Nine hr approaching"- Pepe Escobar
In the pictures from the left:
The aircraft carrier from the US is heading for Iran. –https://natemat.pl/638128,new-motion-usa-ws-iranu-potezna-group-hit-plynie-on-near-east ,
Iran announced joint sea maneuvers with China and Russia in mid-February. –https://events.interia.pl/foreign/news-specto-war-on-near-east-manewry-iranu-z-rosja-i-chi,nId,22545910
And it seems that it would be adequate to take distant the world's Zionist bandits' ability to make US dollars and practice parasitic debt money policy and that they could do so on their own – who then rules the US, who owns them, if that is not possible? – The President
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Zero hr approaching.
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Text for:https://strategic-culture.su/news/2026/01/29/zero-hour-approaching♪ I've got to go ♪ ; https://gab.com/LePetitCastor/posts/115979900992225084
posted commentator:meser
author:Pepe Escobar
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So the full drama reaches its climax: either neoKaligula and his “large army” suspend attacks, creating space for action and yet saving the planet economy, or in Western Asia the gates of hell will open.
Time's moving out. Practically all pieces of the puzzle fit together.
Although his “large army” is deployed, neoKaligula calls Iran on social networks: “MAKE A DEAL” (originally in capital letters). This is the maximum force in practice. Or the anticipation of negotiating. It's either surrender or war.
Three main requirements of neoCaliguria:
1. Iran should abandon its civilian atomic programme, which is to completely halt enriching uranium.
2. Iran must keep its rocket program to a minimum.
3. Iran must halt supporting "substitution forces" – specified as Hezbollah, Yemeni Ansarallah and Iraqi militias.
There is absolutely no chance that Ayatollah Chamenei, IRGC and Majlis – the Iranian parliament – will agree with any point of this ultimatum which is evidently dictated by the Zionist axis. That's why there's no surrender.
Tehran dramatically increases the stakes.
Majlis has already approved the closure of the Ormuz Strait. The final decision belongs to the Iranian government/security apparatus. This is in fact binding on government and troops and de facto empowers the IRGC, under full constitutional protection, to close the Strait of Ormuz.
I've been writing a lot about this in Asia Times over the last decade. At the time, derivatives experts at Goldman Sachs were relentless: if Ormuz had been blocked before or during the full-fledged naval war in the Gulf, the price of oil could have reached $700 per barrel.
And it's only temporary due to the fact that the full planet economy is going to collapse.
Blocking the Strait of Ormuz would primarily consequence in an detonation in the marketplace of derivatives worth 2 billion (my capital letters) dollars, which would update the first misleading calculation of the BIS (International Settlements Bank), which was 700 trillion dollars. Over the years, many Persian Gulf merchants have unofficially agreed to numbers of the order of “bills”.
Also in the last decade, United Chiefs of Staff of the United States admitted that they had no military possible to keep the Ormuz open. It inactive is.
Let us now look at the uninformed small gusan Marco Rubio, purchased and paid for by Zionist billionaire Paul Singer, who has already benefited from the Venezuelan operation, speaking of the "U.S. military position" close Iran.
Since 30–40 000 U.S. soldiers are “within the scope of thousands of Iranian drones and ballistic missiles”, “reasonable” is to have forces that “defens themselves against what could (according to Rubi's definition) be a threat from Iran”.
Of course, this “danger” would never have occurred in the sphere of chaos, looting and permanent – attacks, according to the neoconservative dream that had already been sketched in the late 1990s.
Thus, according to Rubia’s logic, the American Army now reserves the right to carry out an attack ahead of Iran.
Assuming this preventive attack would occur, Tehran has already made it clear, including through the advanced Leader's advisor and State Department, that this will not be a limited war.
Translation: Even the slightest mention of the Tomahawk rocket attack in Iran will affect an immediate and comprehensive “reaction aimed at Tel Aviv and US bases in the Gulf.
Brief summary: NeoKaligula – at least at first glance – formulates its threats as a prelude to the "counterattack", which would actually amputate Iran's atomic program and all its defensive/distorting mechanisms.
Tehran's answer: if you attack us, we will destruct Israel as a functional entity; for this intent we have adequate hypersonic rockets, and you, neo-Caligula, will become liable for the collapse of the planet economy.
"Unconventional weapon" and "strategic surprises"
Venezuela was just a test. Iran is the Holy Grail.
NeoKaligula is not trying to impose an average military blockade on Iran. It launches a severe economical siege war, not only in Iran, but besides in China and Russia, which besides disrupts integration projects of the Belt and way Initiative (BRI) (China-Iran) and the global North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC, connecting Russia-Iran-India).
This is another level – far beyond the hybrid, approaching hot, complex imperial war against BRICS, directed against at least the 4 most crucial members of BRICS: Iran, Russia, China and India.
We are far beyond just “dodging” Iran. This is simply a systemic, comprehensive threat, covering the full geopolitical and geo-economic spectrum, which straight disrupts energy flows, interconnection corridors and strategical partnerships. And all of this is masked as a simple “safety” operation.
Iran's asymmetrical sea strategy, carefully built from the beginning of the millennium, offers countless ways to counter the imperial attack: over 6000 naval mines; deployment of swarm tactics utilizing tiny ships armed with rockets; countless anti-shipper rockets and ballistic missiles deployed along the Gulf coast; dozens of kamikaze drones, submarines and anti-shipper rockets scattered on the Gulf islands.
Iran focuses all its firepower on what it calls “fronting the first line”, the Persian Gulf. Unlike the 12-day war, all possible means will be utilized in this theatre: “non-conventional” weapons, a series of “strategic surprises”, fresh hypersonic missiles, mass cyber attacks.
People with an IQ higher than area temperature in the Ministry of Perpetual Wars could do homework, e.g. in the case of a supersonic ballistic rocket Khalij Fars, which is part of the Iranian AAAD strategy: Mach 3 speed; over 300 km range; heads weighing over 650 kg with an EO/Infrared guidance system. Khalij Fars would enjoy having easy targets for Americans.
Iran has already shut down its radars and is working undercover, including civilian radars at Imama Chomeini global Airport to defend itself against American rockets, while allowing the installation of Russian interference systems Murmansk-BN (they require adequate calibration of radar silence).
On the side of the empire, it is worth paying attention to the approaching entrance of E-11 A BACN into the battlefield: it is not just a reconnaissance aircraft, but a kind of immense "flying router": Wi-Fi at heights that connects F-35 and F-22 with various communication systems with land forces and ships, all in real time and bypassing the celebrated mountainous area of Iran.
Are you ready to destruct the global economy?
NATO is now, as could be expected, everywhere, including harsh rhetoric about government change. A sensible script assumes that neo-kaligula may have made an agreement with EUro-chihuahua: I will refrain (for now) from the annexation of Greenland, but you will support my war with Iran.
Enter another coalition of “wanted” (actually “punished”). It is no wonder that Brussels describes the IRGC as a "terrorist organisation" – equally with Al-Qaeda and ISIS (by the way, both organisations are full standardised by Washington, Brussels and even Moscow).
In parallel, respective NATO bases are being created to aid the U.S.’s “large army” to build a powerful air bridge.
Tehran full understood that neo-kaligula and its Zionist supporters truly want a government change. This has absolutely nothing to do with Iran's atomic program.
However, Iran's president Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf continues to stress that Tehran does not argue the rule of dialog and diplomacy as regards common respect. The Sultan of Turkey Erdogan, for his part, is proposing a tripartite high-level gathering between Iran, the US and Turkey, most likely through videoconferencing.
Now everything is in the hands of diplomacy of the ruthless neo-kaligula and its megalomanic narcissistic temper swings. So the full drama reaches its climax: either the neo-caligul and its "large army" will halt exerting force on Iran, open up the negotiating space and yet save the planet economy, or in Western Asia the gates of hell will open.
Sets a decisive hour.
Pepe Escobar
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Zero hr Approaching came out 29.1.2026 on Strategic Culture.