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German Parliament Report: U.S. Presence in Syria Is Illegal
The Scientific Services of the German Bundestag are the equivalent to the Congressional Research Service in the United States. Members of Parliament can ask the services to give their neutral expert opinions on legal questions and other issues. Opinions by the Scientific Services are held in high regard.
Alexander Neu, a Member of Parliament for the Left Party in Germany, requested an opinion on the legality of the military presence and operations by Russia, the United States and Israel in Syria.
The result (pdf, in German) is quite clear-cut:
– Russia was asked by the recognized government of Syria to help. Its presence in Syria is without doubt legal under International Law.
– U.S. activities in Syria can be seen as two phases:
Regime Change
The provision of arms to insurgents in Syria by the U.S. (and others) was and is illegal. It is a breach of the Prohibition on the Use of Force in international law specifically of the UN Charter Article 2(4):
All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations.
Fight against ISIS
The U.S. argues that its presence in Syria is in (collective) self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter because the Islamic State in Syria threatens to attack the United States. That, in itself, would be insufficient as Syria is a sovereign state. The U.S. therefore additionally claims that the Syrian state is "unwilling or unable" to fight against the Islamic State.
The Scientific Services says that the claim of "unwilling or unable" was already dubious when the U.S. operation started. This for two reasons:
- It is not law or an internationally accepted legal doctrine. (The 120 members of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and others have argued strongly against it.)
- The Syrian government itself was fighting ISIS, but it could not operation in large parts of its territory where the Islamic State had taken control. Some argue that this justified the "unable" argument. But ISIS is largely defeated and it no longer has any significant territorial control.
The already dubious legal case for the presence of U.S. (and other 'coalition' troops in Syria) can thus no longer be made. The U.S. presence in Syria is illegal.
– Israel's attacks on Hizbullah and Iranian units and installations in Syria, as well as against Syria itself, are claimed by Israel to be 'anticipatory self-defense' under UN Charter Article 51. But 'anticipatory self-defense' could only be claimed when attacks against Israel were imminent. That case has not been made. The Israeli attacks are thus 'pre-emptive self defense' which is not an accepted doctrine of International Law.
The service was not asked for an opinion on Turkey's incursion into Syria but it notes that claims of 'self defense', as Turkey makes in its fight against Kurdish entities in Syria, are often abuses for Geo-strategic purposes.
So far the Scientific Services opinion.
The given legal arguments are not new. Other have long reasoned along the same lines and came to the same results.
But Germany is a partner of the U.S. coalition of the willing against ISIS. Its military has flown reconnaissance missions from Turkey and Jordan in support of the U.S. operation under the same legal argument the U.S. made. The German parliament is now unlikely to renew the mandate for the anti-ISIS operation. Other countries will likely follow and end their participation in the U.S. coalition.
While this is will not change the situation on the ground in Syria it does change the international political atmosphere. It also 'rehabilitates' the Syrian government in the European public eye as it can no longer be depicted as an 'enemy.'
For the last two and a half decade it has been a US objective to rail in, dismantle or wreck the EU.
What the US from start thought of as a good idea to counter USSR influence and to keep check the Germans, became unpleasant through the 80ties, as individual European states had become economically stronger in the EU, and did not always follow the US script.
The German reunification was horror come true to them, although it was pleasant when, the USSR crumbled. The were relieved , when they had full support for the 1991 war against Iraq. But dissent grew steadily, the EU became stronger and stronger, suddenly imposing regulations, that severely restricted low quality US produce, bad!
From 2000 it was downhill with relations, they grew steadily more tense, as the EU strictly tried to follow an agenda that would benefit its members. Something had to be done.
I believe the 2008 crisis was engineered to bring down the Euro, because the EU was now areal and present danger to US full spectrum domination. They almost succeeded, but inflicted heavy economic damage on European countries, where the economical weakest almost went into bankruptcy. Remember the EURO was a “young” currency, it did not have endless stamina.
But at least EU saw there true intentions of the hegemon, and started, albeit slowly, to react to to this fact. Decisions and agreements in the EU became increasingly in opposition to US policies.
the Ukraine rebellion, removed every doubt of US intentions; a new major conflict on the European soil, a destruction yet again of Europe, to serve US geopolitical needs, it was not only an reemerging Russia that was perceived as a threat, but also EU, with its aspirations of greater trade eastward.
Any detente in EU towards the Russia – China coop is seen as an existential threat to the US.
I personally, do not in any way doubt, that the US ultimately will use force to stop this, it has troops on European soil, weapons, including nuclear and it does not matter to them if a few European cities disappear, or if a few countries are torn apart by internal strife, political or civil war.
We have to get the US out in one way or the other either break the hegemony back economically, or slowly disengage with it, as it will us no good anymore.
Seen in a historical perspective, the US intentions 50 years ago compared to now, have evolved from something semi- noble to something evil. The original intention of getting Europe on foot again, has been hijacked by a corrupt and greedy cooperations and the MIC, and evolved to a pure egoistic imperial narrative, hell bent on exploiting the world as its own property. This is what we are facing. As is the rest of the world. Russian and China knows this all too well. We in the EU have been the Sleeping Beaty ( Our political class have to some extent) and now must make some very difficult decisions, which may well affect the next century.
As a side comment: The notion that Russia would want a dissolved EU are ridiculous an without merit, it is neither in Russia’s or China’s interest as it would be an enormous hindrance to OBOR; Eu is the anchor at the other end, it is imperial that the EU exists as an entity.
Posted by: Den Lille Abe | Jul 11 2018 6:40 utc | 42
Meyssan published his take on the “beginning” of the Syrian War
http://www.voltairenet.org/article201844.html
Here’s an excerpt:
“From 4 February 2011, a mysterious account Facebook “Syrian Revolution 2011” (in English in the text) calls to demonstrate each Friday against the syrian arab Republic. Using only the symbols sunnis while claiming to speak on behalf of all Syrians, it rythmera events for several years.
According to Al-Jazeera, 16 February, 15 adolescents (and 8 of their classmates) are arrested in Daraa for having tagged slogans hostile to president al-Assad. They have been tortured, and the local head of Security would have insulted their parents. To this day, when it has been confirmed that some minors had been arrested several hours by police, the torture and the insults have never been established. The videos and interviews released by the press anglo-saxon are terrible, but do not correspond neither to the reporting qatari original, or what could be checked on site.
February 22nd, John McCain, who has his mandate of a senator and his position as chairman of one of the branches of the National Endowment for Democracy [1], one of the secret services of the “Five eyes” (USA-UK-Australia-Canada-New Zealand), is in Lebanon. He entrusts the journey of the weapons in Syria to the mp haririste abu okab Sakr. It also goes to Ersal to establish a future base back of the jihadists.
On 15 march in Deraa, a city traditionally baathist, a manifestation of officials presents various claims which the president and the government meet, march 17, through social measures of scale.
Always in Daraa, a protest of islamists held on Friday, march 18, at the exit of the mosque Al-Omari. The crowd chants ” Allah, Syria, freedom “, it being understood that “freedom” should not be taken in the western sense and does not denounce a dictatorship. It is important to understand this term in the sense of the muslim Brothers ‘ freedom to apply sharia law “. During the event, shots are fired, both against police officers and counter protesters, although we do not know where they come from. It is likely that, as we have seen in Venezuela [2], in Libya and in other countries, the shooters were from a third force that would create an atmosphere of civil war and to prepare for the alien invasion. The events escalate. The courthouse and its records were burned, while a group of rioters left the city to attack, not far away, a center of military Intelligence in charge of overseeing the israeli occupying forces on the Golan heights.”
And so hundreds of thousands of Syrians have died, millions injured and displaced, millions still outside the country, all for a Regime Change by ideologues and greedy.
Stopped by Russia, reversed by Russia, Iran, Hezbollah, and Iraqis, and some heroic thousands of Syrian soldiers who fought and died for their nation.
Posted by: Red Ryder | Jul 11 2018 17:13 utc | 80
AT FIRST: To Jackrabbit/71 and to james/72:
Thank you for your kind words! It really means a lot to me! And i dont know everything, but about the dark side of the German society i know pretty much. 😉 So If you have questions, shoot. But i always take much time, as it is quite demanding for me to post on the internet with 1000 other problems i have to deal with. So please be patient!
I want to make a blog/Vlog/Youtube channel in the next months, where i will give those ppl a voice that no “normal” citizen will see, apart from some often quite shitty documentarys and such. Meaning homeless ppl, disabled, sex workers, “Hartz4” and workless people, old people collecting empty bottles on the street to get along, junkies, migrants, criminals, you name it..
I hope B will let me post the link when i start, but it will take some time anyway. I still try to save up for a useable camera and other stuff, so it will take some time..
@75/Somebody:
At first, I am not easily offended, but you sure pushed a button here. I will asume that you genuinely want an open and honest discussion, and dont use personal attacks to uplift your self image, so please take the time to understand my point of view. If you dont want to go thorugh that effort, understand that i dont will too in the future concerning you. Until now, i mostly supported your postings and often took some insight with me. I hope you give me the chance to do that in the future with a true and open discussion. In everything else, i am not interested.
I post because i want to provide something special, a different, personal perspective that comes from the life that i live that is very much different than of most AND of most other left leaning ppl.
Meaning: What i posted to here is ALL my own experience and perspective.
I dont base my view on social media; in fact i am not capable to copy anybody s point of view, because i am so different as a person with Aspergers compared to “normal” people.
Combine that with a life that has always been more roller coaster than anything else.
I have seen more extremes in my life than 99%, and that i can bet on. I have been born with Aspergers into a working/middle class family, didnt have anything missing materially, and then learned the opposite, after my step father tried to strangle my disabled sister and my mother.
I then learned the life on the bottom (better said sewer) of society, living in the so called “frauenhaus”, working with my mother illegally at the age of 10 to clean rich old ladys toilets, and even then eating only noodles with ketchup for days and sometimes weeks, because my father refused our money, and social sercives refused theirs because of our right on support by my father… At least this would not be possible today, because now social services are required to advance the paternal support.
Despite all that traumas, I had still been a perfect student, always best in my age hands down, with continued offers to skip classes. I had great friends, a great class, the nicest girl in class loved me.. But the breakout of my depression at 10 years turned my life around again.
Since then, i committed suicide in small steps as i call it, not having the guts to jump a rope, but going from alcohol with 12 to heroin with 20.
I came from being an overly intellectual Autist with perfect grades and perspective to literally the lowest person in society in my 200.000 person town together with maybe some other homeless junkies. Even the dealers, the robbers were above me. Even in the eyes of the so called “normal” ppl.
While i had the arrogance of a gifted as a child, i now have deep compassion for anybody, no matter class, race, social standing, political leanings, etc.
I can find a human being and positive sides in every one, while even ppl on the so called left often have no problem to spit down on Junkies, work-less, and middle class ppl. I even have compassion for nazis, because every one of them i met (And as a Punk i had many “encounters” in my youth), are lost souls, often abused as child, now using abuse to compensate.
But i also see the negative in everyone. I am not naive. Life forced me to see the dark potential in everyone. No black and white, but the reality of our human existence.
To the point with the 900€ wages: I can say that this was the wage (To be correct 950€) that was offered me for such a 40h full time job a few years ago. The thing is, for the social class that i cam in today, without a finished college study, or even any learned job, you only get 3 things:
1) some BS “Maßnahme”, meaning you “learn” how to write a letter for a job offer, which 95% of the ppl there have done 1000 times. The only reason for such a “Maßnahme” is bullshit statistics. You now are not anymore jobless. Magic! No Joke! No real qualification, no education, of preparation for a true workplace, nothing.
2) You get a 1€-Job. Meaning: Some Kindergarten e.g. run by “Caritas” or any other business where the churches make big € with, pays you 1€ an HOUR (again, no joke) to clean the toilets of such stuff.
You still get mini rent and medical insurance payed, plus around 400€ to “live”, and the 1€ an hour on top. Meaning the state substitutes a private company that can save big money paying third world wages
3) You get a full time job at a “Zeitarbeitsfirma”. Meaning a Company, which hire you, but rents you out to another company.
The company where you work pays a normal wage, but the “Zeitarbeitsfirma” takes a major part of it for their “services” (a total joke).
So in the end, after all expenses, you are paied around 100€-150€ more than “Hartz IV”, which is the total minimum every German has a right on.
I have seen the “Hartz IV” System from DAY 1! Through my first homelessness with barely 18 years old, through many friends, and many ppl i have helped to survive in the system. I regularly help others with their paperwork, go with them to the mandatory BS appointments in the “ArGe”, and have seen dozens and dozens of different cases over around 15 years.
I DONT USE SOCIAL MEDIA, I HAVE TO LIVE THIS FUCKING LIFE!
DO YOU?!
If you want to understand this system, i have a true and deep inside view into it. As opposed to nearly all todays young ppl on the left, who claim to fight for a social society, but spits on those that are in need. Those so called left ppl, that support open borders and dedicate 100% of their political work for refugees, but 0% to anybody else.
Opposed to that i think, that it is WRONG to play migrants against “native” ppl. I have compassion for my afghan neighbor, regularly defend him from our nazi bastard neighbor grandma, lend him electricity, Internet, food, whatever. But i ALSO help those, that the politics (and many so called left ppl) SHIT on, and now take revenge by voting AFD.
And more often than not, i CAN change their view. As opposed to those SJW idiots that can only scream “nazi” when someone who is socially and economically dead votes AFD.
Those SJW typed destroy democracy, and they only strengthen the far right believes instead of defusing them.
Why i want Merkel to go: Many ppl here on the “left” say everyone who is against Merkel, is a Nazi. Its unbelievable, but they do, especially in the green party. They are often the same who are most russophobe, are for US illegal wars, and are neo-liberals.
Being attacked by those ppl is an honor, not something negative.
But to my personal reason against Merkel: She is a snake. Like BoJo, she has virtually NO strong believes, values, a program, whatever. She said herself she went to CDU because there was a guy she wanted to …. You know.
She has backed every crime of Kohl, the CDU, has screamed for us to go into Iraq with Bush, is a Neo-liberal hawk, and has shifted around 180 degrees more often then most of her colleagues, which is pretty hard already.
That now some ppl claim her to be a moral figure, and that she somehow is pro refugees is LAUGHABLE!
I have seem her with her CDU buddys making far right anti migrants propaganda, when in the 90 and early 00 the refugees where murdered, whole family burned. Only we few punks and Antifas were fighting them, while we saw especially the CDU supporting the Nazi gangs raping and murdering refugees and us (a friend of a good friend of mine was shanked to death in the Ruhrgebiet when i was 16, which greatly impressed me for my whole life. This was WAR, and Merkel was on the side of the Nazis, while we and the refugees couldn’t go out of our door alone and without a knife of other weapon.
To the changed public view on immigration: You can cite statistics all you want, i can cite others where a near absolute majority sees the immigration politics as a major problem, that is essential to be solved.
Do you really believe, a majority would prefer open borders? Or would be willing as Claudia Roth said, to take in each and every refugee on the whole world (She truely said that and thinks this is would be doable)?
This major part of the public doesnt want to be lied at anymore. They understand that many asylum seekers lie and are in truth coming for economic reason. And its certain when you look at the whole society, not ultra left extremist bubbles, that most German citizens are not willing to pay for economic gains of say someone from east Eu countrys.
Especially when they have been told, that our German state has not the money to properly support or own disabled, homeless, workless and old ppl.
Many ppl understand, that the German political elites have only used immigration as a tool to force lower wages, put pressure on the job market, etc.
Franz Josef Strauß, the famous right winger from the CDU has been deeply involved in the very first waves of the so called “Gastarbeiter”. And Merkel and other elites play the same tactic ever since. But if you trick the public into a politic like with the “Gastarbeiter”, where the public has been told they would all go home later on, you can not demand them to full fill that politic. Life doesnt work this way. In a democracy you need the public to make honest decision, and accept those, even if you dont support them yourself. Everything else is a dictatorship. Even if it has the best of intentions and values.
Most ppl are pro asylum, but only when laws are respected (only ppl who are politically prosecuted in their own country have a right on asylum, see the Grundgesetz/Constitution), when it is done controlled and reasonable, with control to exclude radicals, and everyone who is not able to live up to our constitutional standards and therefore integrate-able.
Another point to the in your view good social standard here: I could live in the Netherlands, and after a few years i would already get the minimum pension, which was more then 1000€ (1200€ when i remember correctly) some years ago when i had the offer.
Compare that to my mother, who worked since she was 15, and had worked herself up to leading a the photographic department in a high profile advertising agency in Düsseldorf before she went on mothers leave. While she had to work the most shitty jobs after my stepdad did what he did, she again worked herself up through hard years, again leading the sales department of a encashment/collection agency.
After a total of 45 years of work, she now gets 1050 € pension. If she hadnt just payed of her credit, she would be done. This all for literally working herself to being disabled, with fucked up spine, shoulders, arms etc.
Then being scammed by the SPD crime of “Riesterrente”, where at the time the so called “social democrats” crippled the general state pension system, and pushed the ppl into the arms of shady insurance companys. All this does leave a bitterness, that will someday break out and take its toll.
And yes, there are many ppl who still think everything is okay. We have become a “Ellenbogengesellschaft”, where there is zero social solidarity, and the left voting Green who drive with their Tesla to the Bio market truly believe they save the world, but ignore 20 Million to 25 million of their compatriots (Who are diretly in threat of poverty or are below the poverty line already).
We now are on the way that from all new jobs, most are either “befristet” which only go some months to prevent the worker to gain their rights, or are from “Zeitarbeitsfirmen” (Which is the modern western equivalent of economic slavery i can say from first hand. How destructive on a psychological, financial, social level this is, there are many documentarys and reports on the matter if you want to see behind the curtain).
The real financial and social situation of most Germans is in constant decline since AT LEAST the early 90s. Child poorness is on an all time high since the Weimar republic, as is the housing crisis. Another problem i personally have to live with, as there is no flat to find for years for me.
So i have to live in a Ghetto like high rise, broken pluming, drug dealers, regular attempts at break ins.. But when there is one of the rare flats available that are at least barely payable for me, there are 30+ ppl on the open house day, and there is always someone with a much bigger budget, often offering cash just to grease the deal. No chance.
And yes, the country is still working. But it did even in the darkest times. And what is working? The solidarity has been destroyed, big parts of the left are pushing for illegal wars and neo liberalism, the traditional partys have betrayed, their voters and are zombified into caricatures of themselves…
The Media is on a huge decline in trust.. Never seen before in our BRD.
Crisis everywhere, expect those with the cash and/or social position to be ignorant towards those developments. And thats mostly the same in many western countrys i guess.
Only the trust in the justice system and the Verfassungsgericht and Police remains high. Most other institutions are more distrusted then trusted.
PPl have seen to many scandals, while they themselves feel the rising pressure of a turbo capitalistic globalisation of neoliberalism, where countrys, their people and democracy are being fed to the global elites of business, security and political deep state establishment.
Again, as i posted in the first post, the ppl are in collective fear. They dont vote Merkel because they think she would be someone which they share values with. Some may do, but mostly its about one simple thing:
The CDU has ALWAYS since ADENAUR used the scare tactic. They ALWAYS say: “Keine Experimente!”
Meaning: “You vote left, you get Chaos. You vote us, we give you stability. No matter what, in 4 years, you will still have your small salary, your car, etc.”
If you would know even ONE BIT of German after WW2 politics, you know its true. Thats the main recipe for success in Germany, and the CDU has made this to perfection. And Merkel too.
The Financial crisis of 2008 and the Dotcom bubble and even the 1920 crash still have a MAJOR part in the German psyche. Unconscious or not.
This together with the illegal wars, the Islamistic Terror, now the migration crisis, the financial fear, the social fear, all this influences the major part of the “normal” ppl, aside from those that are so financially and socially well that those issues dont have potential to affect them directly.
The tide is turning, and i fear the migration crisis is a tipping point for many ppl out there, the straw that broke the camels back. Thats the reason i say we need to take those ppl seriously, and discuss and convince them, instead of shaming them in the terroristic SJW style. If you want to promote democracy, you got to LIVE democracy. Even and especially for those who think different then we do!
We need to get those ppl back into our democratic system, we need to push the major partys back to respect their voters and mission, we need to be a society aiming for solidarity again, and integrate everyone in our system.
Thats what i want to continue to work for, even when its on such a small mini scale that i do for 15 years.
Peace.
Posted by: SteLe/TheDarkCornerInUrBrain | Jul 11, 2018 11:32:54 AM | 70
Angela Merkel is still Germany’s most popular politician – as of July 2018.
It also seems that most Germans consider care for the elderly, education and housing more pressing issues than refugees also pensions and climate change.
Minimum wage is presently 1,498.00 EUR per month/ 8,84 Euro per hour, taxes depend on family status, for a single person they would be 75,83 Euro.
If you count all deductions – social insurance including health – you will earn 1.111,71 € per month, you will get more if you have family.
Minimum wage in France is exactly the same. Minimum wage in Greece is 683.76 EUR, minimum wage in Italy does not exist for non unionized jobs.
As soon as your job is unionized you will earn more than the minimum wage. Minimum wage for cleaners is 10,30 Euro in West-Germany, 9,55 Euro East Germany.
PPL are depressed, trapped in fear, are realistically see no true alternative.
I would advise you to stop getting information from the internet but walk outside and talk to people.
This country is still functioning and people are able to fight for their rights when they organize.
Posted by: SteLe/TheDarkCornerInUrBrain | Jul 11 2018 20:57 utc | 87
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