Editorial in The New York Times EXCERPT [T]he unsettling truth is that...the United States and its allies are going to have to live with [President Bashar al-Assad], at least for now. Mr. Kerry seemed tacitly to acknowledge as much recently when he urged Mr. Assad to change his policies, while omitting the usual call for him to leave office.... There seems no chance that Mr. Assad will leave power voluntarily anytime soon or that he will be forced out by the non-ISIS rebels.... Besides, the greater threat now is not Mr. Assad but the Islamic State, especially if it continues to expand in Syria, entices more foreign fighters into its ranks and uses its territory to launch attacks on the West. A recent study by the RAND Corporation, which does research for the government, says the collapse of the Assad regime, while unlikely now, would be the “worst possible outcome” for American interests.... As has long been the case, the fighting in Syria raises tough questions and presents the United States with no good options....American fighter planes regularly invade Syrian airspace to bomb Islamic State targets. If the main threat is the Islamic State and the goal is to defeat it, might the West at some point be forced to work with Mr. Assad?... The idea of a capable force of “moderate” Syrians that can overthrow Mr. Assad has proved to be a fantasy, even though politicians like Senator John McCain keep insisting otherwise. Congress...has shirked its duty, and after months of American military action in Iraq and Syria, it has failed to authorize or even seriously debate how this indefinite war should be conducted. nytimes/2015/01/25/opinion/sunday/shifting-realities-in-syria.html
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 10:18:21 +0000
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