© Omar Haj Kadour/AFP/Getty Images
‘Two million or more civilians [are] now huddled in Idlib.’ The ‘Hope’ camp in Kafaldin on the Syrian-Turkish border.
‘Two million or more civilians [are] now huddled in Idlib.’ The ‘Hope’ camp in Kafaldin on the Syrian-Turkish border.
Two points stand out. One is the proliferation of outside interference in what began in 2011 as a purely Syrian campaign for reform. The other is the central and indispensable role that Russia now plays. On Syria's south-western flank, it deploys military police near the Israeli-occupied Golan so as to prevent pro-Iranian militias from moving up and provoking Israeli forces. It turns a blind eye to Israeli air attacks on Iranian advisers in Syria. Only now with Monday's loss of a Russian plane does it give the Israelis a public dressing-down for creating the confusion that led to the missile mistake.
Russia's relationship with Turkey is equally multifaceted. It condemns Turkey's occupation of northern Syrian territory, including parts of Idlib, but uses Turkey's presence to demand that Turkey disarm the jihadis it once supported there. Whether Monday's Sochi agreement will be implemented remains to be seen. Turkey has made earlier promises to tackle the extremists that have come to nothing.
Comment: Every now and then the mainstream news will get it right, or at least report in a more balanced way. However, one thing that is clear from the conflict in Syria is that Western governments bear FULL responsibility for the carnage, as the attempt to overthrow the Syrian government was planned by them years ago with the intention to further their control of the region. Thanks to Russia's intervention in the conflict however, Syria has escaped the disastrous fate of Libya and Iraq.