The Kurds are a stateless ethnic minority that live in parts of Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey. They had provided the only security afforded to Christians and other minorities in Iraq. They have been on the front line fighting against our common enemies in both Iraq and Syria.
Kurdish forces in Syria are considered a nationalistic threat by Turkey, which has announced intentions to attack them. Donald Trump's announcement to withdraw ground forces from Syria seems to clear the way for such actions.
The Kurds once again will be left to their own devices for survival. If we have returned any favor for their help against Isis, it is not apparent.
Likewise, Israel will be defending against Iran in Syria by itself. With John Bolton being part of the administration, I had hopes for more engaged resolve.
ADDENDUM: Removing ground troops from Syria will not be unwelcome by most of Allentown's Syrian American population. Assad's father provided protection to the Christian minority, which comprised a wave of immigrants to Allentown's 6th Ward in the early part of last century.
pictured above Kurdish female fighters
While my heart breaks for the innocents in Sryia the truth is the mission of defeating ISSI there has been completed.It was in our/American interests to engage that effort. What is our interest in staying? Sorry, the same factors could be applied to many other hot spots.Syria is a mess and internal divisions between tribal and religious factions will continue to play out until all sides are exhausted or one dominates the others completely. Let the Russians and Irains continue to meddle there, it's my guess they will make far more enemies than friends.
ReplyDeletescott@8:07, there seems to be some contention about Isis. the fear is that in our absence that they will regroup. also, the Kurds once again feel betrayed.
ReplyDeleteTrump has caved in to the Democrats just like every other Republican always does. Trump has now had his "Read My Lips : No New Taxes" moment. Trump should probably do himself - and, quite literally, everyone else - a giant favor and just leave right office now.
ReplyDeleteI'd rather have the typical Republican Surrender Specialist whom the Lame Stream Media will not keep attacking day in and day out.
Plus, as an added bonus : Who knows, then maybe the Democrats will finally shut the (deleted) up about the stupid Jihadi Journalist who got his (deleted) killed.
Happy Free Universal Health Care to one and all!!!
Respectfully,
ROLF OELER
America, largely under former mayor Giuliani, 'defeated' the mafia in NY. Now, are there remnants still around? Sure. We handle them as they arise. We don't need a thousand-man task force on their butts all the time. In the Middle East...same thing. Reserve the right to re-engage when necessary. We don't need the be the policeman of the region, just an occasional cavalry.
ReplyDeleteThere are just some people, like the Basques in Spain, or the Palestinians, or the Kurds, or the native American Indians, that simply have been screwed by "History." The reasons are both simple......their land coveted, and complex.....geo-political considerations that, at the end of the day, the dominant powers ultimately deem far more important than creating a Kurdish homeland.
ReplyDeleteEveryone ultimately betrays the Kurds. The Americans, Western Europe, and the Israelis at times desperately need them in conflicts with Iraqi or Iran or Russia or Isis or Alquada or whatever. Then, when the crisis is alleviated, reality steps in and the larger picture (in the minds of the dominant powers) is that national interests are best served by accommodating the region's nation states's desire not to have an ethnic Kurdish homeland (since any such territory must, of course, be carved out from they consider their territorial integrity).
Confederation as a possible solution hasn't worked out well in the Balkans in Europe, nor in Israel-Palestine, nor virtually no where else, save for Switzerland (and even there, there are occasional ruptures in the harmony between the German-French cantons). Ironically, confederation could be said to have functioned in the USSR, though central control from Moscow was often brutal.
The United States is not a confederation; it is, in Constitutional theory, a republic comprised of 50 individual sovereign states.... that have granted "only" certain limited powers to the federal government.
Trent Hall: Your last 'graph is beautiful, true, and sadly laughable at the same time.
ReplyDeleteMike, shall we take sides in the Kurds fight for an independent state? Romantics will say yes for all the right reasons, realists will day, that fight is one they must win without the help of US ground troops. And one more point on leaving syria, Trump pledged to defeat ISSI, and I believe he also pledged to bring troops home. Again, he seems to be living up to his word.
ReplyDeleteScott, I agree that a Kurdish homeland is beyond our pay grade.... Although John Bolton recommended a section of northern Iraq back in 2017, because Iraq is so fractured anyway.
ReplyDeleteMost informed sources feel without our presence Isis might well regroup, Trump's opinion apparently isn't even shared by the Pentagon.
While no one there cares a wit about what we think it is still amusing to offer up our thoughts. Along that score I would say that if ISSI regroups we could smash them again with the same determined dispatch that Trump demonstrated as soon as he took office. Sure he would be happy to do it again.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, it is amusing to see some of the same defeatist Democrats who joyfuly proclaimed we had lost the war in Iraq, and cheered whan Barry pulled the troops out years later when we had won it,now pretending to be upset by Trump's actions.
I find it amusing that GOP snowflakes continue to assert that we "could have won" in Vietnam, that we "did win" in Iraq, but, that Obama flaked out, that we "have won" in Syria, and that we "can win" in Afghanistan. They just don't get that we don't know how to "win" in these tribal countries, and sure as hell don't know how to pull out either. When we finally do leave, it is always as if we were never there. The primary reason being that we are choosing only one faction in hopelessly fractured tribal countries and imposing our support for one faction (usually the most corrupt, repressive one, but, one that is more amendable to our commercial interests) only angers the majority of the people living there. Hence, their resentment of us. While we crow about what we have sacrificed FOR THEM, the Vietnamese, Iraqis, Syrians, Afghans, etc., etc. only lament what we have DONE TO THEM.
ReplyDeleteTrump and others correctly have pointed out that we need to avoid lengthy conflicts in stupid wars, but, once engaged, we need to exit in coordination with Allies, while protecting native residents that aided us, and honor our commitments with sound policies, not mercurial tweets that catch everyone unprepared and betray previous understandings.
We need adults in the room, not sycophants kissing the rear of a man child ignoramus.
Trent,you are the ipitome of what is wrong with the modern left.
ReplyDelete