© Sputnik / Valery Melnikov / Kremlj preko Reutersa
If Western leaders are able to put aside the now worn out cliches such as Russian Vladimir Putin 'punching above his weight,' 'Trump handing Putin a victory on a silver plate', not to mention 'Trump as Putin agent', there are serious lessons that they might still be able to draw from Putin's looming victory in Syria.
First, the era in which the United States and/or the West (NATO) can dictate outcomes anywhere across the globe unilaterally has ended. Events in Syria are but the latest confirmation of this fact,
but many in Washington and Brussels still do not see it. NATO expansion drove Russia into China's arms, and the rest is history and the future.
Second, Washington and Brussels (NATO and less so EU) must abandon some aspects of its idealism for realism in foreign policy. Third, hubris, cynicism, and their handmaiden of ethical if not financial corruption have become an obstacle, not 'facilitating grease' for the implementation of Western foreign policies pursued by Washington and Brussels. Fourth, the West must create mechanisms for protecting the conduct of foreign policy from the influence of domestic political competition, as was clearly over the top in Syria and more so in Ukraine. Fifth, while a tough negotiator and dangerous enemy,
Putin is an effective tactician and diplomat and improving strategist, who has outplayed the West in Syria and elsewhere precisely because of the Western deficiencies outlined above.
Unipolarism's Grave: 'We Came, We Saw, He Died'
Putin's successful intervention in Syria and utilization of not just Iranian interests but also those of NATO member Turkey has demonstrated that
even a country with 'an economy the size of that of the Netherlands' can foil American plans for color revolution and inflict great damage to America's interests and reputation in foreign affairs through effective diplomacy and measured military means. By exposing the new Washington style of hubris, cynicism, and corruption in Syria, Putin's Syria intervention put the last nail in the coffin of the United States' ability to dictate outcomes anywhere across the globe and define the future. Events in Syria are but the latest confirmation of this fact, but many in Washington and Brussels still do not see it. NATO expansion without Russia continues to push the West on the same dangerous road of radicalizing Russian anti-Westernism, strengthening the Sino-Russian strategic partnership, and creating a phalanx of authoritarian regimes strongly opposed to American and even Western interests. Thus, the world is not only no longer unipolar. It is becoming bipolar or multipolar in ways exceedingly detrimental to Western interests and international stability and security.
This is a disaster not just for Washington and Brussels but for the world, and mantras about Russian imperialism and totalitarianism will prove of no help.
Comment: The US continues to make threats that few countries can afford to obey: Russia ready to build Nord Stream 3 & provide Europe with as much gas as it needs