Syria Outmaneuvers 'West', Regains Legitimacy
Since 2014 the United Nations delivered humanitarian supplies to the al-Qaeda infested north-western 'rebel' region in Syria (marked green on the map below). A UN Security Council decision provided the necessary backing.
Coming from Turkey the UN convoys passed mostly through the Bab al-Hawa crossing, east of Hatay in south Turkey. The 'authorities' in the north-western area, i.e. al-Qaeda, used the distribution of the goods to keep control of the population.
Source: Syria.liveUAmap - bigger
After the February earth-quake the Syrian government opened two other crossings from Turkey. But most of the UN goods kept flowing through Bab al-Hawa.
The Syrian government has said that all goods should go through the territory its controls and not through Turkey. The terrorists in north-west have largely boycotted and blocked crossings from Syrian government controlled areas into their enclave.
Syria and the Russian Federation have insisted that the UN Security Council decision should be modified or ended and not renewed.
On Tuesday the new attempt for another renewal failed. Russia vetoed the 'western' supported resolution and proposed a different one which failed to gain the necessary quorum.
Without the authorization of the Security Council the UN had no legal way to continue the convoys. Today the Syrian government made a surprise move and offered its approval to keep Bab al-Hawa open for the UN convoys:
In a letter submitted to the United Nations and the Security Council, Syria said it would allow the United Nations access to the crossing for six months “in full cooperation and coordination” with the Syrian government.
...
The United Nations said on Thursday it was studying Syria’s letter and the potential effects on its aid delivery operations.“The coordination and cooperation with the U.N. has always been there and will be there,” Bassam al-Sabbagh, Syria’s ambassador to the United Nations, told reporters. He did not elaborate on requirements by his government, but said the U.N. should not work with “terrorists” in the north, an apparent reference to opposition groups that control the area.
The UN will not want to end the convoys. With this move the Syrian government will gain at least some control over the goods coming in and over their distribution.
Syria and Russia have thereby outmaneuvered the 'western' efforts to stay in control of the issue:
“Now President Assad has said he will open Bab Al-Hawa for six months. But without U.N. monitoring, control of this critical lifeline has been handed to the man responsible for the Syrian people’s suffering,” Barbara Woodward, the United Kingdom’s ambassador to the United Nations, who holds the monthly rotating presidency of the Council this month, said in a statement.
...
Andrew Tabler, the National Security Council’s former Syria director, called Syria’s decision a “checkmate from Moscow” for the United States and its allies, and another blow to the West’s Syria policy.
The Arab countries, which have recently made peace with the Syrian government they had long attempted to overthrow, will support Syria's move.
There is little the 'West' can do. To hold up the UN convoys under this or that excuse would certainly be seen as hypocrisy and revenge that has nothing to do with the convoys claimed humanitarian purposes for which they had argued all those years.
Not that they ever seriously meant that. Just consider this by the Council of the EU:
Syria: EU extends humanitarian exemption for another six months
On 23 February 2023, the Council introduced an additional humanitarian exemption into the sanctions regime in view of the situation in Syria to facilitate the speedy delivery of humanitarian assistance, following the devastating earthquake that hit Türkiye and Syria.To continue responding in a timely manner to the urgency of the humanitarian crisis in Syria, and to keep facilitating the rapid delivery of aid, the Council has decided to extend the duration of this humanitarian exemption for a further six months until 24 February 2024.
The exemption from the asset freeze and from the related prohibition on making funds and economic resources available to listed individuals and entities aims to further facilitate the operations of international organisations and certain defined categories of actors involved in humanitarian activities in Syria.
As Aaron Maté correctly points out:
Aaron Maté @aaronjmate - 13:48 UTC · Jul 14, 2023If you have to extend a “humanitarian exemption” in Syria for a fixed period of time, that confirms that you’re being anti-humanitarian in Syria every other time.
By keeping Bab al-Hawa open for the UN Syria will strengthen its global position. Syria, with the help of Russia, will likely continue to make diplomatic moves which will, slowly, slowly, enable it to regain a more normal standing in the world.
Posted by b on July 14, 2023 at 15:19 UTC | Permalink
Every friggin time I read prepared statements b has included here I find myself gritting my teeth with frustration at the blatant hypocrisy. What this Woodward biotch is telling us is exactly the opposite of what is actually happening with their supposed humanitarian efforts in Syria. WHY is the UN giving aid to western proxy terrorists to mete out food and supplies as they see fit?? I'm shaking with rage in my chair this morning!!
Posted by: safe | Jul 14 2023 15:56 utc | 2
b, this is all a kabuki show.
The UN is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Empire Inc.
Any 'legitimacy' Syria hopes to gain within the forum of the UN is illusory.
Working with the UN to achieve 'legitimacy' is like taking a 2-dollar hooker to a gala event to prove what a gentleman you are.
What will achieve 'legitimacy' for Syria is to act like a state and exercise a monopoly on violence by bombing the living hell out of anything coming through the borders of Turkey into Syria.
Posted by: Arch Bungle | Jul 14 2023 16:09 utc | 3
@safe #2: calm down because it is the Barbara Woodwards of this world who are seething with rage for having been outmaneuvered.
Posted by: Ernesto Che | Jul 14 2023 16:14 utc | 4
This confirms once again, though confirmation was not needed, that the Russians are the best chess players in the world.
Russia outmaneuvered the West in Syria, and also in the Ukraine.
Unfortunately, the message does not get through to Biden and his European, South Korean, Japanese, and Australian lapdogs.
Posted by: Ernesto Che | Jul 14 2023 16:18 utc | 5
The coverage of Russia's successful intervention in Syria at Moon was awesome. While I was reading it in 2012-2014 I found a great book by Patrick Seale called simply "Asad", about Bashar's father.
Highly recommend for some historical context of the long running Israeli- American efforts to install one of their stooges to run this independent nation.
Bashar is a remarkable figure. The only middle eastern leader targeted openly for death by US imperialism to survive in my lifetime and now slowly consolidating gains.
His story is really a turning point in history marking a catastrophic weakening of imperialism in the ME. A large part of the retard rage against Putin in western elite circles started here.
Posted by: Ahenobarbus | Jul 14 2023 16:22 utc | 6
Posted by: Ahenobarbus | Jul 14 2023 16:22 utc | 6
Assad & how it got started, I generally trace it back to the Second Lebanon War (Izzie name) in 2006, that was the first time the Izzies got handed their ass like that. Assad is a remarkable guy, and the Syrians are a remarkable people. Assad is not like his Daddy. The Russian intervention there in some ways foreshadows the current spectacle in Ukraine, Putin's parsimonious and patient tendencies on display in both, and the concurrent diplomatic effort.
Posted by: Bemildred | Jul 14 2023 16:33 utc | 7
Syria doesn't actually have any physical control over the Bab al-Hawa crossing (a border point of which I have many happy memories of the hours spent attempting to cross and get my documents signed and stamped, at least two hours each time). So the success is somewhat legalistic. Syria would be unable to prevent a supply attempt that wasn't in conformity with UN authorisations.
Mind you, if I were a Syrian in Idlib, I'd be getting very fed up with the limitations of life there, under a jihadi administration.
Posted by: laguerre | Jul 14 2023 17:34 utc | 8
@8 laguerre
The old man had a Canadian Embassy gig in Amman, Jordan back in the early 90's and had to go to Damascus every 6 months to inspect and maintain encrypted comm equipment at their embassy as well. Every time he had to cross the border at I'm guessing the main hwy at Jaber an Sirhan he would put a US 10 dollar bill in his passport to show the guards there. That, and his embassy plates would get him thru in record time, usually.
Posted by: safe | Jul 14 2023 17:58 utc | 9
Posted by: laguerre | Jul 14 2023 17:34 utc | 8
Syria doesn't actually have any physical control over the Bab al-Hawa crossing (a border point of which I have many happy memories of the hours spent attempting to cross and get my documents signed and stamped, at least two hours each time). So the success is somewhat legalistic. Syria would be unable to prevent a supply attempt that wasn't in conformity with UN authorisations.
..
Indeed. I don't see any clever outmanoeuvring here. Looks more like poor Syria is resolved at the prospect of big fat NATO sitting on her chest for quite some time to come.
Syria hasn't regained any legitimacy either. The crushing sanctions that the West imposes are still going strong, as attested by the mention of the specific exemptions.
In addition, the going narrative spin here is that those evil Russians are obstructing the delivery of humanitarian aid.
All in all, I would say the West still enjoys narrative dominance here. The public is mostly unconcerned and, when pressed, quite supportive of the "humanitarian" warfare waged against the Syrian nation and finds it quite natural that a third of its territory is occupied.
Posted by: robin | Jul 14 2023 18:21 utc | 10
"The United States has the power to decree the death of nations" which it accomplishes by lying to Americans: "Americans are said to be ignorant of the world. We are, but so are people in other countries. If people in Bhutan or Bolivia misunderstand Syria, however, that has no real effect. Our ignorance is more dangerous, because we act on it. The United States has the power to decree the death of nations. It can do so with popular support because many Americans-and many journalists- are content with the official story. In Syria, it is: “Fight Assad, Russia, and Iran! Join with our Turkish, Saudi, and Kurdish friends to support peace!” This is appallingly distant from reality. It is also likely to prolong the war and condemn more Syrians to suffering and death.”...Feb. 18, 2016, “The media are misleading the public on Syria,” Boston Globe, Stephen Kinzer
Posted by: susan mullen | Jul 14 2023 19:30 utc | 11
Feb. 18, 2016, “The media are misleading the public on Syria,” Boston Globe, Stephen Kinzer:
“Coverage of the Syrian war will be remembered as one of the most shameful episodes in the history of the American press. Reporting about carnage in the ancient city of Aleppo is the latest reason why [as of Feb. 2016].
For three years, violent militants have run Aleppo. Their rule began with a wave of repression. They posted notices warning residents: “Don’t send your children to school. If you do, we will get the backpack and you will get the coffin.” Then they destroyed factories, hoping that unemployed workers would have no recourse other than to become fighters. They trucked looted machinery to Turkey and sold it.
This month [Feb. 2016], people in Aleppo have finally seen glimmers of hope. The Syrian army and its allies have been pushing militants out of the city. Last week they reclaimed the main power plant. Regular electricity may soon be restored. The militants’ hold on the city could be ending.
Militants, true to form, are wreaking havoc as they are pushed out of the city by Russian and Syrian Army forces. “Turkish-Saudi backed ‘moderate rebels’ showered the residential neighborhoods of Aleppo with unguided rockets and gas jars,” one Aleppo resident wrote on social media. The Beirut-based analyst Marwa Osma asked, “The Syrian Arab Army, which is led by President Bashar Assad, is the only force on the ground, along with their allies, who are fighting ISIS — so you want to weaken the only system that is fighting ISIS?”
This does not fit with Washington’s narrative. As a result, much of the American press is reporting the opposite of what is actually happening. Many news reports suggest that Aleppo has been a “liberated zone” for three years but is now being pulled back into misery."
Posted by: susan mullen | Jul 14 2023 19:38 utc | 12
Excellent news. Any erosion of the Empire's position anywhere is a positive development. Idlib's recently been under increasing military pressure as has the overall Imperial presence. I sense something will follow this move, but what that might be I'll not speculate.
This confirms once again, though confirmation was not needed, that the Russians are the best chess players in the world.
Russia outmaneuvered the West in Syria, and also in the Ukraine.
Unfortunately, the message does not get through to Biden and his European, South Korean, Japanese, and Australian lapdogs.
Posted by: Ernesto Che | Jul 14 2023 16:18 utc | 5
Biden is working on a strategy of "King me".
Posted by: kupkee | Jul 14 2023 20:12 utc | 14
@ Ahenobarbus | Jul 14 2023 16:22 utc | 6
i ordered a copy.. thanks for the suggestion!
"Superlative Study of a Syrian Statesman
By Thriftbooks.com User, August 23, 2008
This is such a superb work, that the title of this review warranted alliteration. Still pretty much one of the best works on modern Syria: simultaneously a biography, a history, and an analysis of inter-state machinations in the Middle East. Nice narrative flow, much of it based on interviews with the persons involved, including Asad himself. I really can't recommend this enough. Anyone with even a remotely passing interest in the Middle East should read this book. A pity Seale didn't produce more works as this and his other work "The Struggle for Syria", which covers an earlier period, are so freakin' amazing! I also recommend, as a companion piece "The Lion of Damascus" by David Lesch, a biography of Asad's son, the current Syrian president, Bashar al-'Asad."
Posted by: james | Jul 14 2023 21:03 utc | 15
The real deal is to make Turkey confront Israel. Popcorn!
Until then Syria is not out of the woods.
The elephant in the room is Lebanon which has suffered most from instability in the region. USA has built the largest embassy in the world in Lebanon which is nothing but an in-house military camp.
Posted by: Jason | Jul 14 2023 21:05 utc | 16
Having a military foothold in Syria is essential for Russia to checkmate Turkey which is an unpredictable mess.
As Sweden and NATO have abandoned Kurds, Russia should provide them weapons to tame Turkey and win their long fought Kurdistan.
Posted by: Jason | Jul 14 2023 21:09 utc | 17
warning given long time ago July 2008.
Mr. Putin -there is not much time left. Anglosaxon pirate race like English and Americans are spreading their evil design like wild fire on this world, 2020 is too late. Russia has to prepare for coming world war 3 imposed on it by England and run by USA. Russia must ally with China and Germany to destroy England the primary seat of evil.
Posted by: Sam | Jul 14 2023 22:04 utc | 18
Posted by: james | Jul 14 2023 21:03 utc | 15
Agreed. I was searching for more by this historian after I read it too. They don't make em like that anymore.
Posted by: Ahenobarbus | Jul 14 2023 22:48 utc | 19
The old man had a Canadian Embassy gig in Amman,
Posted by: safe | Jul 14 2023 17:58 utc | 9
Unfortunately I didn't and don't hava a diplomatic passport.
Posted by: laguerre | Jul 14 2023 23:43 utc | 20
Looks more like poor Syria is resolved at the prospect of big fat NATO sitting on her chest for quite some time to come.
Posted by: robin | Jul 14 2023 18:21 utc | 10
The US will get bored soon. There are other priorities. Its position in the Aran world is falling apart, notably with the split with Saudi. The rewarming of relations between the Arab League and Syria is more important than this event that b recounts. Saudi was the main funder of the war in Syria, and now it's buddies with Syria again. The Israeli-US position in the ME is far more fragile than it has been for years.
Posted by: laguerre | Jul 14 2023 23:55 utc | 21
Does anyone else think an eventual deal on Russia-Ukraine involving territorial concessions (Crimea, Donbas etc) will be tied in with a similar deal for Syria-Turkey involving territorial concessions (Idlib, Afrin etc)?
I think Syria should let Idlib & Afrin go in return for uniting with Lebanon...
Can they do it?
Posted by: Julian | Jul 15 2023 4:39 utc | 22
I'm just waiting for the day when Russia quits f---king around and straight up shoots down an American drone over Syria.
Posted by: Sam (in Tiraspol) | Jul 15 2023 6:07 utc | 23
Neocons consider both Syria & Russia their personal property. So they began an "Obama is weak" campaign, which worked: In 2013 Obama “started working directly with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to resolve crises in Syria and other hotspots. Putin helped avert an escalation of the war in Syria in September 2013 by negotiating the removal and destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles. But the neocons were apoplectic that they failed to convince Obama to order a massive bombing campaign and escalate his covert proxy war in Syria and at the receding prospect of a war with Iran. Fearing their control of U.S. foreign policy was slipping, the neocons launched a campaign to brand Obama as “weak” on foreign policy and remind him of their power….Obama invited [Robert] Kagan [V. Nuland's husband] to a private lunch at the White House, and the neocons’ muscle-flexing pressured him to scale back his diplomacy with Russia, even as he quietly pushed ahead on Iran.”… 3/20/2015, “A Family Business of Perpetual War:” Robert Parry...https://consortiumnews.com/2015/03/20/a-family-business-of-perpetual-war/
Posted by: susan mullen | Jul 15 2023 6:47 utc | 24
Posted by: laguerre | Jul 14 2023 23:55 utc | 21
The US will get bored soon. There are other priorities. Its position in the Aran world is falling apart, notably with the split with Saudi. The rewarming of relations between the Arab League and Syria is more important than this event that b recounts. Saudi was the main funder of the war in Syria, and now it's buddies with Syria again. The Israeli-US position in the ME is far more fragile than it has been for years.
Is it really? My observation is that Israel's ability to bomb Syrian targets, anytime and anyplace, has actually grown in the last decade. Also, it doesn't appear that the Syrian people can expect the return of the Golan anytime soon.
In my opinion, this situation is linked to Syria's near total loss of economic, military and diplomatic power.
As for the US, its position isn't too bad here.
It still holds vast territories East of the Euphrates and the big wedge of Al Tanf, thus denying Syrians access to valuable resources and trade. And this is by mere deterrence alone.
The occupation of the north also serves to weaken Syria as a nation. And, arguably, outsourcing this job to the Turks has kept the bill fairly small for Uncle Sam.
Uncle Sam doesn't get bored, and I'm pretty sure he won't go anywhere until he's booted out of Iraq.
Posted by: robin | Jul 15 2023 6:56 utc | 25
I'm just waiting for the day when Russia quits f---king around and straight up shoots down an American drone over Syria.
Posted by: Sam (in Tiraspol) | Jul 15 2023 6:07 utc | 24
They were afraid to shoot down a drone over Black Sea, played the "eject the fuel" game, once. Erdo had no problem shooting down a Russian plane that did not attack anything (a result of great minds from Russia who don't think drones are useful, just use people and planes). It's a very low probability Russia will do anything in Syria against us/nato. Their little base in Syria is just that, a little base. US will never leave Syria, they're actually increasing their presence. Russia tried a few months ago to have another little base outside Russia and Sudan ceased to exist.
Posted by: rk | Jul 15 2023 7:13 utc | 26
US will never leave Syria, they're actually increasing their presence.
Posted by: rk | Jul 15 2023 7:13 utc | 27
Never is a long time.
Posted by: UWDude | Jul 15 2023 7:23 utc | 27
I think Syria should let Idlib & Afrin go in return for uniting with Lebanon...
Can they do it?
Posted by: Julian | Jul 15 2023 4:39 utc | 23
No. Syria is a livewire of political contention in Lebanon. Its very complicated, but the Lebanese civil war made more issues than it solved. (Because it solved nothing, just sputtered out and nothing changed)
Posted by: UWDude | Jul 15 2023 7:29 utc | 28
Posted by: susan mullen | Jul 14 2023 19:38 utc | 12
...This does not fit with Washington’s narrative. As a result, much of the American press is reporting the opposite of what is actually happening. Many news reports suggest that Aleppo has been a “liberated zone” for three years but is now being pulled back into misery."
In my opinion, Aleppo exemplifies Western mastery of the narrative. At the time, we were subjected to some of the most intense and most strident barrage of information. Added to the well scripted stories of chemical attacks, it helped shape public perception of all things Syrian and enabled all sorts of belligerent actions. As you point out, the contradiction of waging economic warfare on the very people who were the focus of our (alleged) concern in 2016 is completely erased.
The point you make at | Jul 14 2023 19:30 utc | 11 is also spot on. The Western audience, as the ultimate arbiter and enabler of belligerent foreign policies, is obviously the prime target for information warfare.
Posted by: robin | Jul 15 2023 9:14 utc | 29
Posted by: susan mullen | Jul 15 2023 6:47 utc | 25
Neocons consider both Syria & Russia their personal property. So they began an "Obama is weak" campaign, which worked...
This actually shows how susceptible the US electorate is to manipulation.
The sectarian divide is so thorough and silly atavisms so predictable, that pushing memes such as Obama weak on Syria, Biden appeasing China or Trump too soft on Russia, is just about the easiest way to mobilize the entire electorate against Syria, China and Russia.
Posted by: robin | Jul 15 2023 9:14 utc | 30
Uncle Sam doesn't get bored, and I'm pretty sure he won't go anywhere until he's booted out of Iraq.
Posted by: robin | Jul 15 2023 6:56 utc | 26
Nice to see an American troll on MoA, spouting US propaganda. They got bored of Afghanistan only a couple of years ago, but somehow that one has already disappeared down the memory hole. Iraq they can only traverse in rare armed convoys, in order to get to Syria, otherwise it's only flying in, like those isolated firebases in Vietnam. Even the Kurds in Syria are not a very reliable base, as they've had to be forced into accepting the US troops. A slight turn of events and the Yanks would be out.
Posted by: laguerre | Jul 15 2023 11:33 utc | 31
Laguerre @ | Jul 15 2023 11:33 utc | 32, how can my posts possibly be construed as American propaganda? Here I am pointing out the belligerence and cynicism of American foreign policy and you're calling me an American troll? Could you walk me through your reasoning?
Posted by: robin | Jul 15 2023 12:10 utc | 32
"The West" is increasingly limited to the "G7" out of nearly 200 countries world-wide.
And with most of the G7 burning money like there is no tomorrow "because Putin", their relevance is shrinking fast.
Even more detrimental is their attitude to diplomacy. Which they have replaced by a rather simplistic black-and-white model of the world.
Posted by: Marvin | Jul 15 2023 12:58 utc | 33
Posted by: robin | Jul 15 2023 12:10 utc | 33
You haven't understood, have you, that to proclaim US omnipotence, as you do, even if you oppose US criminality, is actually to support it. I've warned commenters on MoA for years about this, and the longer-term residents have got the message, but you haven't. The US is not omnipotent, nor do they have a well thought-out policy. They're increasingly lurching from one short-term solution to another, and the ME policy there is no future in. The position is increasingly fragile.
Posted by: laguerre | Jul 15 2023 13:35 utc | 34
laguerre @ | Jul 15 2023 13:35 utc | 35
I suppose we see things differently.
I believe that exposing American belligerence is a good way to chip away at the narrative of a benevolent, altruistic global marshal bringing liberty and justice around the world. This narrative is predominant and is what keeps the motor running.
Denying American belligerence or pretending Syria is somehow winning is wishful revisionism. It may sound appealing to folks emotionally attached to a particularly superficial viewpoint, but it won't make the aggression disappear and it certainly doesn't help Syria.
Posted by: robin | Jul 15 2023 14:15 utc | 35
Posted by: robin | Jul 15 2023 14:15 utc | 36
American belligerence, fine, no-one would disagree. It is the American omnipotence where you haven't understood, the idea that America can do whatever it wants, is where you have it wrong. The case of Ukraine has been not bad for exposing that the US can't do what it wants. The same is true in the Middle East. In Syria it's on its last legs. Iraq is an unwilling host; the US is hated by everybody. One can go on.
Posted by: laguerre | Jul 15 2023 14:57 utc | 36
laguerre | Jul 15 2023 14:57 utc | 36
*** The same is true in the Middle East. In Syria it's on its last legs. Iraq is an unwilling host; the US is hated by everybody. One can go on.***
As long as the US-empire has supremacy of firepower, its UK subsidiary to run 'dirty tricks', and the Israelis it worships to carry out the occasional massacre or hit-job ... why would it care what others think (but often dare not say)?
Posted by: Cynic | Jul 16 2023 21:29 utc | 37
Syria's 'legitimacy' can also be augmented by restoring the historic fraternal ties between the government and Syrian Kurds. Through the height of the civil war the Kurds maintained a hold on their own territory and left governmenmt forces untroubled in a couple of enclaves. The ISIS 'uprising' caused notable changes which resulted in Kurdish forces, probably encouraged by NATO reprsentatives, taking control of ISIS positions on the east bank of the Euphrates. The Turkish incursion changed that dynamic. The US 'supported' Kurdish "FSA" forces occupying territory well outside their traditional holdings. And the Kurds supported US oil theft operations.
The Arab World is in flux. Loyalties and agreements are shifting. The best that the Kurds could get would be to be left alone. Where they are now, tha's not going to happen. So they have a very real choice to make, and an opportunity to make the best deal they can, with Assad.
Posted by: Kevin Quinn | Jul 20 2023 23:38 utc | 38
The comments to this entry are closed.
yeah! thanks b... things change slowly, but sometimes they do change for the better..
Posted by: james | Jul 14 2023 15:25 utc | 1