World News and Trends: American concerns grow over Syrian military aims
The Sunday Times reported that "investigators tracking the spread of nuclear technology and know-how through the clandestine sales network of the Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan believe that Syria might have acquired centrifuges that can purify uranium for use in nuclear bombs" (July 4).
He is known to have in times past assisted North Korea, Iran and Libya in acquiring nuclear components on the weapons black market. Danielle Pletka, a spokesperson for the American Enterprise Institute who is well briefed on the Mideast nuclear situation, said that "the United States government has consistently outlined our concerns with regard to Syria's pursuit of weapons of mass destruction. We are very interested to learn the scope of the A Q Khan network, but we are not in a position to say with certainty that Syria has centrifuges" ( The Sunday Times, July 4).
Also, Steven Cooke of the Council of Foreign Relations stated that "it's no secret the Syrians have historically sought an answer to Israel's overwhelming conventional superiority and have an active biological and chemical weapons programme. If they could acquire a nuclear option, it would shift the strategic situation in the region" (ibid.).
All this information (including the article about Iran above) makes columnist Gerald Seib's comments all the more interesting. In his piece "While US Politics Focuses Elsewhere, Atomic Threat Stews," he says: "If Iran keeps moving toward a nuclear weapon, Israel may launch a pre-emptive strike to stop it . . . If Iran crosses the finish line anyway, Egypt and Saudi Arabia . . . may decide they also need nuclear arms" ( Wall Street Journal Europe, Aug. 11). The same could apply to Syria.
The Middle East is a very unstable area in an uncertain world. One can see why so much of end-time biblical prophecy is focused on this part of the globe. To understand the real significance behind today's dangerous developments, request or download our free booklets The Middle East in Bible Prophecy and Are We Living in the Time of the End? All of these events and trends add to the solid indicators that we are living in what the Bible calls the latter days. (Sources: The Sunday Times [London], The Wall Street Journal Europe.)
An Article from:
Good News Magazine: September - October 2004
Course Content
Jerold Aust
Jerold Aust has served in the ministry for 52 years, as a public speaker for 58 years, a published writer for 38 years, and is employed by UCG’s Media and Communications Services. He is a Senior Writer, interviewer, and editor for Beyond Today Magazine and has taught Speech Communication for UCG’s ministerial online program and the Book of Revelation for ABC.
Jerold holds a BA in theology from Ambassador College, Pasadena (1968), an MA in Communication from California State University, Fullerton (1995), a distance-learning Ph.D (2006), and a Famous Writers School diploma in non-fiction writing (1973). Additionally, he studied post-grad communication at University of Southern California (1995), radio, TV, voice-overs, and Public Relations at Fullerton College (1995-1996), and graduate communication at Wichita State University (1978). Jerold has taught communication at the University of South Alabama (7 years) and ABC (17 years). His published works include, Ronald Reagan’s Rhetoric: Metaphor as Persuasion and EZSpeakers: Public Speaking Made Easy in 7 Steps. Jerold's overarching goal is to share with humankind its incredible destiny!
John Ross Schroeder
John died on March 8, 2014, in Oxford, England, four days after suffering cardiac arrest while returning home from a press event in London. John was 77 and still going strong.
Some of John's work for The Good News appeared under his byline, but much didn't. He wrote more than a thousand articles over the years, but also wrote the Questions and Answers section of the magazine, compiled our Letters From Our Readers, and wrote many of the items in the Current Events and Trends section. He also contributed greatly to a number of our study guides and Bible Study Course lessons. His writing has touched the lives of literally millions of people over the years.
John traveled widely over the years as an accredited journalist, especially in Europe. His knowledge of European and Middle East history added a great deal to his articles on history and Bible prophecy.
In his later years he also pastored congregations in Northern Ireland and East Sussex, and that experience added another dimension to his writing. He and his wife Jan were an effective team in our British Isles office near their home.
John was a humble servant who dedicated his life to sharing the gospel—the good news—of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to all the world, and his work was known to readers in nearly every country of the world.
