Proposition for ending the crisis in Syria: concurrent devolution of power regionally and military action against genocidal fighters nationally
Tuesday, September 15, 2015
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| Syrians as refugees because of this level of destruction of their cities |
Politics is the art of
compromise. Successful politicians rarely give ultimatums because doing so
would limit their ability to navigate complex issues. In 2012, President Obama underestimated
the complexity of the crisis in Syria. He drew a “red line” for President
Assad: the use of chemical weapons would have “enormous consequences” and would
“change [his] calculus” on American military intervention in Syria’s civil war.
A year later, someone used weaponized chemicals, killing hundreds of civilians.
Although no investigation was conducted to identify the perpetrator at that
time, the U.S., encouraged by its regional allies like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and
Turkey, accused the government of Bashar al-Assad. Just days before world
leaders were to meet in New York, U.S. bombing of Syria was all but certain.
Then two key events changed the course of history. First, Prime Minister David
Cameron, initially supportive of military intervention, was restrained by the
British parliament. As of September 7, 2013, the U.S. Congress was also set to
not authorize the use of force in Syria, especially if it was not authorized by
the UNSC. Second, U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, made a “silly mistake”,
to borrow the words of some observers.
