“This is a mistake that we also often made during the imposed war”, said one online post following confirmation of the two colonels’ deaths, comparing them to those who fell in the conflict against Saddam Hussein. Rebel forces who wanted Bashar al-Assad out waged war with the government, killing more than 200,000 people since then, BBC reported.
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“The attempts… to overthrow undesirable regimes have led to a breakdown of security mechanisms, chaos, anarchy; they are posing a risk that states would collapse and their territories would be seized by terrorists”, said the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry. These are coordinated with the military actions between the Russian air force and the ground armies from Syria and Iran.
An alliance of Free Syrian Army-related insurgent groups said on Tuesday it was sceptical about a Russian proposal to help rebels. The four-way meeting in Vienna last Friday, which excluded many parties including France, laboured with one single point: the fate and role of Assad. Russia’s interests in Syria run deep and wide, and the Kremlin sent signs that it intends to be a key interlocutor involved in any discussions of a political solution to the crisis.
The Islamic State is a would-be global jihadist extremist network born out of the Iraqi insurgency and the Syrian civil war, with offshoots around the Middle East. But Iran clearly has a stake in Syria’s future, as Assad’s government has helped the Iranians exert dominance over nearby Lebanon and threaten Israel through their proxy, Hezbollah.
Moscow’s intervention has divided the anti-Assad bloc.
Lavrov noted that there is no such thing as “good terrorists”, whom are not to be dealt with, adding “It is also necessary to make clear who the political opposition in Syria is”. It has now closer ties with Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE; all close allies of the United States.
Separately, Obama called Saudi leader King Salman. “We do expect in this case that Iran will be invited to participate”.
Despite these obvious contradictions though, the West and its Sunni allies should at least explore with Moscow the possibilities for a few kind of political settlement in Syria that both could support.
“This is about coming together to try to reach a consensus view on what an effective political transition can look like in Syria”, Kirby said. “I’m not going to get into specific invitations as yet”, Kirby said Tuesday.
The US, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Turkey met last week in Vienna, putting forward new ideas to revive diplomatic hopes.
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“He felt it was important to continue that momentum”.
