Russia warned the United States on Sunday against repeating past mistakes, saying that any unilateral military action in Syria would undermine efforts for peace and have a devastating impact on the security situation in the Middle East. The Russian Foreign Ministry said its statement was a response to U.S. actions to give it the option of an armed strike against Syria. It drew a parallel between reports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces had used chemical weapons and Washington’s 2003 intervention in Iraq following accusations by then-President George Bush’s administration that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein’s government possessed weapons of mass destruction.
“We once again decisively urge (the United States) not to repeat the mistakes of the past and not to allow actions that go against international law,” the ministry said.
“Any unilateral military action bypassing the United Nations will … lead to further escalation (in Syria) and will affect the already explosive situation in the Middle East in the most devastating way.”
Moscow said any military action would severely hamper joint U.S.-Russian efforts for an international peace conference to end a civil war that has killed more than 100,000 people.
“The threat to use force against the Syrian regime sends the (Syrian) opposition conflicting signals,” the ministry said. “All sponsors of the opposition, which have influence over it, must seek the fastest possible agreement from Bashar al-Assad’s opponents to hold talks.”
U.S. President Barack Obama met his security advisers on Saturday to debate options following reports of the alleged chemical attack. U.S. naval forces have been repositioned in the Mediterranean to give Washington the option of an armed strike.
Syria’s opposition accused Assad’s forces of gassing many hundreds of people – by one report as many as 1,300 – on Wednesday. Syria said earlier on Sunday it had agreed to let the experts visit the site.
Russia, which has suggested that Syrian rebels may have carried out the attack, also said on Sunday that assigning blame too soon over the alleged poison gas strike would be a “tragic mistake”, before a U.N. investigation on Monday.
Although the basic advice of The Russian Foreign Ministry is logical, his reference to Hussein not having any WMD is totally inaccurate. For six months President Bush listened to his (then) Secretary of State insisting that an extended pow-wow would cure the problem. Not so: For that six months we knew there were nightly convoys from Iraq to Iran hauling hundreds of semi-trucks full of weaponry that Saddam wanted out of his back yard before visiting troops arrived.
On the other hand, just like the Russians intimated, our support of middle eastern “spring” uprisings has resulted in the biggest mess anyone could imagine. Our foreign policy for the past while has been confusing at best.
And when you draw a red line in the dirt, warning those on the other side not to cross it, you better be ready to bloody their nose the first time their big toe crosses the line. Otherwise you loose total credibility and likely get your own nose bloody.
On the other hand: What actual business is it of ours? We don’t see the rest of the world, especially the neighbors of Syria, jumping into the middle of a Syrian national revolution. Sure it’s a travesty. So are a lot of other things. And they are none of our business either.
Feeling grumpy tonight, so that’s just my 2c worth on a grumpy night. 🙂