"The Warfare of Genghis Khan" is the 101st episode of The West Wing and the 13th of the fifth season. It originally aired on NBC on February 11, 2004. Events circle around the detection of a nuclear detonation over the Indian Ocean, a scenario similar to the Vela incident. Written by Peter Noah and directed by Bill D'Elia, the episode contains guest appearances by Christopher Maher and Christina Chang. It also introduces to the series Armin Mueller-Stahl as Israeli Prime Minister Efraim 'Eli' Zahavy, and gives a first, short glimpse of Jay Mohr as conservative talk-show host Taylor Reid. Plot When the characteristic "double-flash" of a nuclear detonation is detected over the Indian Ocean, President Bartlet calls upon his administration to investigate which state has joined the "nuclear club." The administration covertly contacts the governments of Russia and China asking them to communicate with Iran and North Korea, respectively, to ascertain whether either was behind the test. Vice President Russell, who is seeking a more important role within the administration, is briefed on the situation but does not seem to grasp it. North Korea is eventually ruled out, leaving Iran as the most likely suspect and fueling fear that a nuclear weapon could reach the hands of an Islamic terrorist group. Because Iran and the U.S. do not maintain official diplomatic relations, the President calls Iran's ambassador to the UN from New York to the Swiss embassy in Washington. Leo McGarry grills the ambassador over Iran's nuclear program, but he rebuffs their accusations and gives no conclusive indications that Iran was behind the test. Nevertheless, the administration remains suspicious and the President orders B-2s scrambled for potential simultaneous air strikes on five Iranian uranium enrichment facilities. McGarry tells Communications Director Toby Ziegler to have a statement ready once the strikes are carried out, as Ziegler unsuccessfully tries to convince McGarry that the situation would be better handled by the UN. Vice President Russell steps in, recounting to the President and the Joint Chiefs an encounter he had with a drunken Israeli government official who revealed that the country had secretly developed its own nuclear submarines. Russell surmises that Israel (which, having developed nuclear weapons technology years ago, would have no apparent reason to perform a test) needed to test a weapon that had been miniaturized to fit on a submarine-based missile, earning new respect for himself within the administration. The