Interesting piece about why Russia is in Syria.
Vladimir Putin bids for major world role as his forces move into Syria
Last week satellite images revealed Russia’s military expansion in Syria, with deployments of troops, tanks and warplanes. Now western governments are scrambling to respond to the shift in power in the Middle East
'Putin and Kremlin had a clear goal to overcome international isolation because of Ukraine' – military analyst Alexander Golts. Photograph: ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis/Alexei Nikolsky
Emma Graham-Harrison and Alec Luhn
Saturday 26 September 2015 19.02 EDTLast modified on Saturday 26 September 201519.04 EDT
Moscow has been isolated for years by sanctions slapped on the country as punishment for its annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in eastern Ukraine. Doubling down on his support for the beleaguered Syrian regime, Putin sent a clear signal that there would be no solution to the bloody quagmire without Moscow.
“Putin and Kremlin had a clear goal to overcome international isolation because of Ukraine,” says Alexander Golts, military analyst and deputy editor of a news site that was censored hours after Crimea was annexed. “The idea of an anti-Isis coalition looked like some kind of excellent bridge to overcome isolation, and it appears to have worked.”
Last week’s military expansion around Russia’s Latakia airbase captured on satellite pictures is not purely posturing. Russia is keen to hold on to its only air and naval bases in the Mediterranean, averse to letting regime change sought by the west go ahead, and worried about the influence of radical Islamists in Muslim areas.
But by sending a few thousand troops to well-protected bases, where they are not currently expected to do more than train and support Syrians, Putin has broken out of diplomatic isolation, staked out Russia’s claim to a strategic presence in the Middle East, and made a case that no deal can be done in any international conflict without Russia.
A couple of months ago the Russian leader would have arrived at the UN for the general assembly meeting as a virtual pariah. Now he has a meeting set with Barack Obama, and the lingering European conflict will be politely ignored as leaders gathered in New York wait eagerly for his suggestions as to how they can edge back from the brink in Syria.
“The Russian goal is to reassert their pivotal role in handling any global crisis,” said Jonathan Eyal, international director at the Royal United Services Institute thinktank. “Without Syria, a man known for aggression in Ukraine has to stand up and explain himself. Now everyone appears to have forgotten what happened in Ukraine and they [will be] hanging on every word. That’s quite a turnaround.”
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The price of this transformation has been the deployment of up to 2,000 troops to an airbase in Syria, along with 24 warplanes, tanks, helicopters and anti-aircraft complexes. A Russian soldier told news site Gazeta.rurecently that 1,700 troops were already at the naval base in Tartus and were renovating the pier there.
Some in the west have expressed concerns about the military buildup, with British defence secretary Michael Fallon warning that it “will only complicate what’s already a very complicated and difficult situation”. His US counterpart Ashton Carter said that fighting without working towards a political situation would “pour gasoline” on the conflict.
But western policy over Syria is in such disarray that Russia’s brand of ruthless realpolitik has turned Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, into an unexpected trump card. Even in European capitals, politicians who once called for his ouster are grudgingly starting to argue that the dictator is his country’s only grim hope for some kind of stability.
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Vladimir Putin bids for major world role as his forces move into Syria
Vladimir Putin bids for major world role as his forces move into Syria
Last week satellite images revealed Russia’s military expansion in Syria, with deployments of troops, tanks and warplanes. Now western governments are scrambling to respond to the shift in power in the Middle East
'Putin and Kremlin had a clear goal to overcome international isolation because of Ukraine' – military analyst Alexander Golts. Photograph: ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis/Alexei Nikolsky
Emma Graham-Harrison and Alec Luhn
Saturday 26 September 2015 19.02 EDTLast modified on Saturday 26 September 201519.04 EDT
Moscow has been isolated for years by sanctions slapped on the country as punishment for its annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in eastern Ukraine. Doubling down on his support for the beleaguered Syrian regime, Putin sent a clear signal that there would be no solution to the bloody quagmire without Moscow.
“Putin and Kremlin had a clear goal to overcome international isolation because of Ukraine,” says Alexander Golts, military analyst and deputy editor of a news site that was censored hours after Crimea was annexed. “The idea of an anti-Isis coalition looked like some kind of excellent bridge to overcome isolation, and it appears to have worked.”
Last week’s military expansion around Russia’s Latakia airbase captured on satellite pictures is not purely posturing. Russia is keen to hold on to its only air and naval bases in the Mediterranean, averse to letting regime change sought by the west go ahead, and worried about the influence of radical Islamists in Muslim areas.
But by sending a few thousand troops to well-protected bases, where they are not currently expected to do more than train and support Syrians, Putin has broken out of diplomatic isolation, staked out Russia’s claim to a strategic presence in the Middle East, and made a case that no deal can be done in any international conflict without Russia.
A couple of months ago the Russian leader would have arrived at the UN for the general assembly meeting as a virtual pariah. Now he has a meeting set with Barack Obama, and the lingering European conflict will be politely ignored as leaders gathered in New York wait eagerly for his suggestions as to how they can edge back from the brink in Syria.
“The Russian goal is to reassert their pivotal role in handling any global crisis,” said Jonathan Eyal, international director at the Royal United Services Institute thinktank. “Without Syria, a man known for aggression in Ukraine has to stand up and explain himself. Now everyone appears to have forgotten what happened in Ukraine and they [will be] hanging on every word. That’s quite a turnaround.”
Advertisement
The price of this transformation has been the deployment of up to 2,000 troops to an airbase in Syria, along with 24 warplanes, tanks, helicopters and anti-aircraft complexes. A Russian soldier told news site Gazeta.rurecently that 1,700 troops were already at the naval base in Tartus and were renovating the pier there.
Some in the west have expressed concerns about the military buildup, with British defence secretary Michael Fallon warning that it “will only complicate what’s already a very complicated and difficult situation”. His US counterpart Ashton Carter said that fighting without working towards a political situation would “pour gasoline” on the conflict.
But western policy over Syria is in such disarray that Russia’s brand of ruthless realpolitik has turned Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, into an unexpected trump card. Even in European capitals, politicians who once called for his ouster are grudgingly starting to argue that the dictator is his country’s only grim hope for some kind of stability.
Continue reading at:
Vladimir Putin bids for major world role as his forces move into Syria
