How Russia Can Help in Syria
Despite Official Washington’s annoyance,
the Russian involvement in Syria could work in favor of U.S. national
interests by adding forces experienced in dealing with Islamic
extremists and capable of restoring some stability, a prerequisite for a
political settlement, writes ex-CIA official Graham E. Fuller.
By Graham E. Fuller
Washington has been wrapped in confusion
and indecision for years now in trying to sort out just what its real
objectives are in Syria. The obsessive and ultimately failed goal of
denying Iran influence in the Middle East has notably receded with
President Barack Obama’s admirable success in reaching a deal with Iran
on the nuclear issue and gradual normalization of Iran’s place in the
world.
But while the Israel lobby and its
Republican allies failed to block Obama’s painstaking work in reaching
that agreement, they now seem determined to hobble its implementation in
any way possible. This is utterly self-defeating: unable to block
Iran’s re-emergence they seem determined to deny themselves any of the
key payoffs of the agreement — the chance to work with Iran selectively
on several important common strategic goals: the isolation and defeat of
ISIS, a settlement in Syria that denies a jihadi takeover, the rollback
of sectarianism as a driving force in the region, a peaceful settlement
in Iran’s neighbor Afghanistan, and the freeing up of energy/pipeline
options across Asia.
