Russian President Vladimir Putin (2nd L) and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (2nd R) meet with servicemen as they visit the Hmeymim air base in Latakia Province, Syria, Dec. 11, 2017.
Jamie Dettmer, Voice of America: Putin Declares ‘Mission Accomplished’ on Syria; but, Could It Prove Premature?
Vladimir Putin confirmed last week he would seek a fifth term as Russia’s president next March — and this week, he kicked off his re-election campaign, not in his home country, but overseas in the Middle East.
With stops in Egypt, Turkey and Syria, where he declared Monday that Russia’s military had accomplished its goal of saving President Bashar al-Assad from ouster, an upbeat Putin appeared eager to stoke national pride and showcase how he has restored Russia’s Soviet-era role as a serious power.
Putin’s re-election is assured — polls show an easy win for the man who has dominated Russian politics for nearly two decades — but he and his aides reportedly fear voter apathy and seem determined to secure a large turnout in March and a big legitimacy-boosting vote.
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Previous Post: Putin Orders Partial Withdrawal of Russian Troops From Syria (December 11, 2017)
WNU Editor: I am not the only one who was/is skeptical of Russian President Putin's order to start withdrawing soldiers from Syria .... Putin’s ‘mission accomplished’ moment in Syria was all for show (Bessma Momani, The Globe and Mail). And now I am reading this .... Russia will keep bases in Syria to strike at insurgents: Kremlin (Reuters). And for those soldiers who are leaving, it appears that they are being replaced by contractors .... Thousands of Russian private contractors fighting in Syria (Washington Post/AP). Bottom line .... his announcement of victory was for public relations and for a Russian audience, but there is going to be no change in the Russian composition in Syria, and the war is far from over.
Update: The Pentagon is also seeing no Russian withdrawal .... Russia not withdrawing forces from Syria, Pentagon says (Reuters).
2 comments:
What we have in the Pentagon is a bad case of sour grapes, because there would be no ISIS had the US never invaded and occupied Iraq in the first place. Secondly, the Pentagon's assertion that there'll be no Russian withdrawal is particularly ironic given that the US military has no intention of withdrawing its 2,000 troops from Syria which are present without any agreement with the Syrian government or any international mandate, making it an unprovoked invasion and occupation. Putin specifically said that the two bases in Tartous and Latakia would remain in business and the Russian commander specifically said that the tasks still to be accomplished could be handled by the Russian forces slated to stay along with the Syrian military. Given the shameful record of the American military/political establishment for going to war based on outright lies, I trust the Russians far more than I trust anything coming out of the Pentagon on this.
Your trust in Putin and the Russians (and hence in this case Iran) should make it easier for you to gain citizenship in Russia
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