The U.S.-led coalition fears that Russia’s lawful operations in Syria may lead to the termination of U.S. hegemony.
When Russia decided to join the fight against ISIS, it made sure its operations were lawful and that the Syrian Government was aware of the implications of its decision to ask Vladimir Putin to step in. Meanwhile, the U.S.-led coalition has been illegally fighting in Syria. Russia is rapidly winning a war in which it entered with the sole purpose of exterminating ISIS and its determination has paid off. According to a recent article in the Washington Post, posters of Putin are appearing on billboards in Syria and Iraq, praising Russia’s intervention in Syria as one which will “redress the balance of power in the region.” After more than a year of “largely ineffectual efforts” by the U.S.-led coalition to defeat ISIS, Russian airstrikes are perceived as a “turning point,” the paper added.
Irish journalist Finian Cunningham wrote in an op-ed for RT in mid-October that Russia’s successful military intervention in Syria signals that the hegemony of the United States is over. Washington and its Western allies have been trying to discredit and derail Russia’s intervention and have called on Moscow to cease air strikes which were reportedly hitting civilians and the Syrian opposition. The United States, the U.K., France, Germany, Turkey and Gulf Arab allies said in a joint statement that Russian strikes would “only fuel more extremism” while French President Francois Hollande emphasized the importance of targeting “Daesh and not other groups.”
“Moscow is helping to destroy Western regime-change assets,” Cunningham opined. The situation is even more severe for the U.S.-led coalition since Washington, France, Britain, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar have been “investing” billions of dollars in their attempt to overthrow the Syrian government, partly to undermine Bashar al-Assad’s allies in Russia and Iran.
Plus, three days after Russia accepted the Syrian government’s invitation to annihilate ISIS, CNN reported that U.S. President Barack Obama was willing to cooperate with Putin “but only if that plan removing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.” If Russia refused the United States’ offer, Obama warned Moscow’s air campaign “would only lead to further bloodshed and bog down” Russia. Putin has since insisted that Assad is the legitimate president of Syria and that the purpose of Russia’s intervention is to support his sovereign government.
American economist and blogger, Paul Craig Roberts, wrote in a blog post that “the hegemonic Unipower [the U.S.] ceased to exist on September 28,” when Russian President Vladimir Putin’s speech at the 70th anniversary of the United Nations “changed the balance of power in the world.”
American German historian and freelance journalist, William Engdahl, also believes that Putin is defeating more than ISIS in Syria. The fact that Russia has been able to bring the ISIS combatants into a state of “panic” emphasizes the “dirty double game” the United States has been playing for the past year.
A recent opinion poll in Syria revealed that Syrians want their country to remain united and that they continue to believe ISIS has been created by the United States. It showed that most Syrians support a position identical to that of the Russian government, namely to end the war, defeat the jihadi terrorists and return to peaceful conditions. As David Ignatius wrote in his opinion piece for the Washington Post, “Putin was hardly ambiguous in his intentions.”
This is probably one of the reasons why Russia’s involvement in the fight against ISIS is being applauded by Shiites in Iraq, who want Putin to help them get rid of the terror group. Hakim al-Zamili, leading Shiite politician told Reuters in an interview that if Russia helps Syria annihilate the terror group, Iraq “will be forced to ask Russia to launch air strikes.” Plus, Iran-backed Shiite militias hope for a partnership with Russia to counter U.S. influence and ultimately turn the tables.
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