Saudi Arabia's offer to send troops to 'fight ISIS in Syria' is farcical

Sputnik
Sat, 06 Feb 2016 05:16 UTC

© REUTERS/ Ali Hashisho

Saudi Arabia is offering to send troops to Syria to give the world the impression that Riyadh wants to combat the Islamic State, despite its continual support for the terror group, Gulf Affairs Institute Director Ali al-Ahmed told Sputnik.

On Thursday, Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Defense said it stands ready to deploy ground troops to Syria to fight the Islamic State, which is also known as Daesh.

"The Saudis want to appear that they are against terrorism and against ISIS [Islamic State]," al-Ahmed told Sputnik on Friday when asked why Riyadh would announce that it was prepared to send troops to Syria. "ISIS [Islamic State] is a Saudi proxy, just like the 1980s when they supported the so-called mujahideen in Afghanistan."

Saudi Arabia, al-Ahmed added, is simply trying to appease the United States and its allies, and has no intention of sending troops into Syria.

Another reason that Saudi Arabian leaders will not intervene militarily on the ground in Syria is because they want to avoid direct confrontations with Iran and Russia, al-Ahmed claimed.

US Department of State spokesperson John Kirby recently said the United States is discussing the parameters of Riyadh's offer to deploy ground forces to Syria.

Comment: Further reading:

"The US strategy of supporting terrorist networks in MENA now seems to be paying dividends. It has allowed US Defense Secretary Ash Carter to welcome a Saudi offer to participate in ground operations in Syriaby a US-led coalition, and Carter's openness to the introduction of US ground forces in Libya. Both developments are in keeping with the US strategy of promoting terrorism and endless war in the Middle East and North Africa to keep its adversaries at bay and maintain its hegemony over the region," the academic concluded.

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