This is an important story for students of Bible prophecy. Javier Solana, the European Union's High Representative of Common Foreign and Security Policy, is calling Israel's bluff. Even secular observers are seeing it -- something has changed Read about it here. But, unfortunately, only a handful of end-times reporters will be able to give an accurate analysis.

One of these reporters who will be able is Constance Cumbey. Constance and I may not always agree about the meaning of all we see, but since 1999, we've been watching the same thing together. A new, global, center of power is rising in Europe before our eyes -- one that is foretold in Scripture, and no one is paying much attention.

From the beginning of the year, Constance was telling me something big was going to happen in June. That's because, in June the EU, the US and NATO leaders, were going to make major decisions regarding the shape of our post Cold War new world order. Boy, was she right.

On the surface, the big issues in the June meetings were reported to be the US gaining NATO help in Iraq and the EU having more say in the Middle East peace process. But, below the surface, there was something these leaders had on the table that was much larger -- a shared security problem of crisis proportions. The Western leaders were discussing their next strategy in a mad race against time with international terrorists and weapons of mass destruction.

What most Americans don't understand, key to our Western leaders strategy in the war against terror is Javier Solana's new security doctrine for the EU. This also happened in June. You see, it was at their June, 2003 summit that Solana presented his 10-page security doctrine to the EU leaders. It was call A Secure Europe in a Better World.

As I wrote in my commentary and recorded in my book, the most amazing thing happened when Solana delivered his new security doctrine that hot day in Greece. At that time, the Western leader's post Cold War world order lay fractured over the Iraqi war and nobody knew what to do about it. Suddenly, a man appeared among them with a solution.

Six days later, Solana and the other required EU officials went to Washington to sign an important new treaty. The treaty was an agreement between the US and the EU to coordinate their war against terror and weapons of mass destruction. It was Solana's idea. And, it was made possible by his new security doctrine.

Now, Solana has startled the diplomatic community by calling Israel's bluff. He boldly told Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon the EU was going to be envolved in the peace process, like it or not. This act has sent shock waves through the international order and hired thinkers are scrambling to figure out what's going on. 

And, what's going on is, something else happened this June when the Western leaders met. Javier Solana was appointed the EU's new, super Foreign Minister. And, although this powerful new post was said not to be active until the EU's new constitution is ratified, inside observers knew better. And, now it's out in the open -- Solana has become the single voice for Europe.

We should have seen it coming. In fact, as I record in my book, when Javier Solana was appointed the first High Representative of the European Union, a man by the name of Antonio Missiroli warned that this type of event could happen. Missiroli wrote:

Javier Solana's appointment as EU Council Secretary-General and High Representative for the CFSP is expected to foster coordination and consistency .... however [Solana's appointment], may also create a dualism with the presidency of the Union and, more generally, tension within the new EU troika: in fact, the democratic element represented by the rotational presidency may be easily offset by the SG/HR (http://www.iss-eu.org).

The reason this is so interesting for us students of prophecy, Missiroli's warning appeared in Chaillot Paper # 38 for the then Institute for Security Studies, a think tank for the 10-nation Western European Union military alliance. A month later, on November 1999, Solana also was appointed Secretary General of this same WEU alliance.

On July 1, 2004, only days after Javier Solana was appointed to the post of EU Foreign Minster this June, Solana announced to a gathering of representatives from 10 Asian nations that his new office was replacing the EU's rotating Presidency system Read about it here.

And now, on July 23, Solana stared the old war horse, Ariel Sharon, in the face and called his bluff.

Friends, there is a powerful new leader on the international stage.

His name is Javier Solana.