Assad is back for good in Syria - and with Trump’s blessing

More like a triumph for Putin. It was his deft handling of the situation that forced Israel and Saudi Arabia to accept defeat. And they are defeated. That is why they are scrambling to make peace with Assad, because they know if the war continues on its current trajectory, Syria will become a strategic launch point for Iran and Hezbollah. Not to mention the fact that Assad was going to win anyway. Trump is absolutely correct to accept the peace deal, and if it pans out, America will benefit greatly from extricating itself from that quagmire, but Trump is hardly the architect of this outcome, so to call it his "triumph" is an exaggeration.

 

Let me know when you find some of these mythical Syrian democrats.

As far as I'm aware, the REAL moderates in Syria side with Assad.

 

Death among Syrian civilians is not a new thing, unfortunately.

I don't know enough about the conflict in Syria to argue about the tactics of the democrats there -- was there a different course they could have followed, was an armed uprising a wise thing at that time, and so on.

I'm quite willing to believe that Syria had the choice of Assad, or becoming another Libya, and I'm not only willing to believe, but do believe, that the West would have been happy with the latter.

As for getting help for foreigners -- hell, Americans brought in the French monarchy to help them kill other Americans who were loyal to their lawful king. German democrats had no choice but to collaborate with the people dropping high explosive onto the homes of German workers.

As someone said, Revolution is not a Tea Party.

 

And if Iran and Hezbollah leave, which they will probably do if the Syrian government tells them to leave, how will that fit into the "Iran is a malign actor who wants to conquer the world" narrative being spun by Israel and Saudi Arabia?

Surely if Iran is an aggressive, expansionist power, AS THEY CLAIM, then Iran will not forfeit their strategic gains in Syria voluntarily. Instead, they will dig in, in defiance of the Syrian government, and continue their push towards the Golan Heights.

 

Way, after thought.

Unless the Kurds are ready to negotiate with Turkey,
and that outcome seems so doubtful,
considering the Kurds in Turkey content to be Turkish nationals, Erdogan, etc.;
the best bet for the Kurds' security and autonomy just may be with
Russia as their new best friend and ally.
Russia would not have to give away Assad turf as much as bargain with Assad for the Kurds. Be a little more militant in northern Iraq. And let Turkey and Iran watch. Maybe they will invest more in Kurdish inclusiveness and contentment.
If not their own 'stan, Russia as a new best buddy and ally would improve the lives of Kurds as has failed to deliver.

Y'think?

 

Isn't that nice.

Canada has decided to take in dozens of jihadists along with their families. What could go wrong?

 

They come south of the 49th .
that "ethereal border" now?

 

The Kurds will come under the protection of the Syrian government. Turkish forces will be made to leave. The Kurds have already been in negotiations with the Assad government for some time. I believe they will come to an understanding.

 

News of alleged agreement between Assad, Kurds followed by removal of YPG flags in Syrian north
Helbast Shekhani |
July 03-2018 12:05 PM



http://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/959575d0-1203-4153-95bd-7126691870ae

 

And I thought we were stupider than any other liberal country! But then we're taking hundreds not dozens, so we are. The world over we're known as 'Those stupid Brits.' - except in France, where we're known as 'Those stupid Rosbifs.'

 

Israel is certainly not a fan of Assad, but it brought stability and was largely predictable ... and the Israelis know that.
As for their air strikes, the targets of Assad's allies are the Hezbollah and Iranian Revolutionary Guards in Syria.
And in the past, it had been the "evil" Syrian weapons that targeted the Israelis .... because the Israelis were afraid that they would fall into the hands of the rebels or worse ... ISIS or other terrorists.

Will be interesting, what now the solution is for these Iranian / Hezbollah forces who are very close freind and ally of Assad...

 

Bibi has been demanding the US work to destabilize and isolate Syria since 1996. So they got what they wanted in Clean Break Strategy.

 

The Kurds were mostly nomads until they began to settle around Kirkuk to work for Darcy's oil company.

 

What is it that you think Saudi Arabia wants in Syria?

 

As I said, I haven't tried to follow the situation in Syria, partly because it was too depressing. I can well imagine that lots of ordinary Syrians are very decent people who would like to live in a normal country, not in a Ba'athist dictatorship. Just like most Russians would like to have a normal country, not one run by gangsters; and most Mexicans would love to live in a country free of corruption and drug lords.

But you've got to have organization -- something to focus popular sentiment: leaders, who sit at the top of a pyramid of support. That is what is absent in these countries, and is why armed thugs can become the de facto power. In the long term, an independent educated middle class can provide this, but it's a slow process.

As for Syria, look here -- https://socialistworker.org/better-...on-in-syria-with-anand-gopal-and-yasser-munif -- for a lot of links to descriptions of Syrians who are neither Assadists nor Islamists. (The source are extreme left wingers, so not people fond of the US or Western imperialism.)

 

Perhaps. But only until Assad talks Putin into helping him regain the Golan, and with the Yanks gone, who's going to stop him? Certainly not the fart.

 

The Kurds are Indo European and not Semitic nor Turk.

 

Most scholars seem to think they are Hurrian.. sometimes called Mountain Turks.. they are predominantly Sunni. They roamed in a semi nomadic life from Lebanon to southern Russia.

 

The clustermuck you created. The US failed in the ME, big time. For decades. And the Brits before them. Your attempts to dominate the region all ended up in catastrophe and disgrace, all of them. Can Russians do as bad as you did? If they are, it's going to be quite a feat, in which they will have to work overtime, killing people for the profits of their own MIC.

The thread is a peaceful recognition of the US/Israel/Saud axis failed effort (if the goal ever was peace) in the ME. The only virtue in Trump is his acceptation of the fact.

 

Iran has been dogging Saudi Arabia for 40 years.. They want a footprint on the Arabian peninsula as well as control of Bab al Mandab, the Straits of Hormuz and Socotra Island. That's quite a separate issue from Israel and the US.

 

It's their problem. I don't see why we must back up one despicable regime over another - when we're not backing both. It's hard to imagine how more mucked up can the ME possibly be. We (as the Occident) took the wrong, short-sighted decisions every time since 1956.

 

The Saudis have always been the good guys and a staunch ally of the US. Look at their track record since 1935.

Russia has always been close with Iran. Qatar shares the South Pars gas field (huge) with Iran..

Qatar wants a gas pipeline thru Syria .. Iran wants control of Socotra, Bab al Mandab and the Straits of Hormuz.

Iran funds Hezbollah, HAMAS and the al Houthis in Yemen... all of which are against the interests of Saudi Arabia, the US and Israel.

How's that for a tangled mess?

What is Trump's position or is he just putty in Putin's hands?

Is Trump on BOTH sides?

 

EVERYBODY HAS FAILED IN THE MIDDLE EAST BIG TIME. That includes all the middle eastern nations themselves.

I do agree that US policy has contributed to the clustermuk bigly, but so have all the "colonial" nations and so has your beloved Russia.

 

A little reality:

The real credit here other than the Syrian soldiers, should be given to Lavrov for his diplomatic work between the different parties, something which was going on for years. Also to Vladimir Putin for his ability to maintain a good relationship with all the parties involved such as: Israel, Iran, Turkey, KSA, Qatar, Kurds, etc., and to the Russian military for their ability to train the Syrians, coordinate movements, and for gaining the respect of the Syrian people by freeing them and by giving them medical aid, as well as helping Assad in their everyday needs.

It's also Russian troops, mostly from Chechnya that guard the deconfliction zones. This way Israel's fears can be pacified, as well as the Syrian Sunnis living within the zones, rather than having Syrian soldiers that might be embedded with Iranians. As for Trump, his main credit is that he had the courage to go against the deep state and all the rest of the garbage, and didn't obstruct Lavrov's diplomatic attempts the way Obama was doing. This is why Lavrov said that Kerry is a good man, but Obama is evil.

As for the reconstruction of Syria, Assad said he will not accept any American and probably any other western company in the reconstruction after they had ran out on him. As I suspected, other than Russia, the aid will be coming from China. Syria is strategic for its long term plans in trade routes.

Just my opinion, but it's an educated one.

 

This is probably naive as hell ... but there a lot of people who hoped, and had reason to believe, that the junior Assad (now in power) would move Syria in a more -- shall we say, 'relaxed', direction. There is a huge range of ways to be authoritarian, some of them much worse than others. Smart authoritarian regimes try to accommodate all sectors of society. They put on the mask of liberal democracy and then, with luck, the mask begins to grow into the face.

Lots of very nasty regimes -- the Greek colonels, the Chilean military, the Spanish fascists -- made transitions to democratic rule. The problem with Syria is the sectarian issue, which is going to complicate everything. But maybe they'll pull it off.

This is what democrats have to hope for now in Syria.