By Paul Iddon
China, Russia and the Iranian regime should not be condemned for their policies vis-á-vis Syria.
The Syrian conflict persists, the country is rapidly descending into utter despair, her cities have been bombed, shelled and largely churned to rubble, over 250,000 Syrian citizens are homeless, or are being hosted in refuge camps abroad. In excess of 20,000 people have been killed. Both the army and the armed opposition have committed heinous crimes against the Syrian people.
In the midst of such horrors it is essential that one gauges ones condemnation soberly. Looking at Iran's relation to all of this one easily can see the heavy realpolitik motive of the regime supporting its only real ally in the region, even if such realpolitik renders its rhetoric utterly nonsensical.
Similarly the Russia and China's vetoing the United Nations Security Council Resolutions condemning Mr. Assad are understandable, and don't constitute aggression against the Syrian people. Russian arms supplies to Syria since this crisis began haven't increased nor decreased, the Russians are simply steadily supplying spare parts to the Syrian military, the Syrian military isn't being supplied with any new military hardware -- let alone any new hardware in bulk -- to enable it to enhance its abiliy to seek out and eliminate the various insurgent groups across the war ravaged state.
In the broader outlook being presented to us about the Syrian conflict a lot of attention is focused in particular on Assad's brutal means of suppression and the sectarian makeup of the country, hence the idea that the Alawaii minority is being pitted against the Sunni majority. An often neglected feature of the country's ethnic makeup is that of its Kurdish population, which constitutes about 8% of the total population.
The Syrian Kurds are currently in a de-facto truce with the regime. An interesting feature of their outlook on this whole thing is their total bewilderment at the idea of Turkey caring in the slightest of human rights for Syrians after the way the Kurds have been treated at the hands of the Turks in the past. In fact the Syrian Kurds have made it clear that it will fight on the side of the regime if Turkey militarily intervenes in the conflict – which it would probably do under the pretext of a humanitarian intervention to establish humanitarian safe zones in order to protect civilians against Assad's forces.
In the 1990's during the conflict between the Turkish state and the PKK the Turks (after declaring the Kurds to be their own people) carried out an extensive campaign against the predominately Kurdish populated south-eastern Turkey. This campaign saw to – among other sordid exploits – the killing of 50,000 Kurds and the destruction of some 3,000 villages – several of which were completely obliterated from the air -- which in turn saw to the displacement of some 2 million Kurds. All of this was done under the same pretext that Assad is using for his oppressive means, to deny the “terrorists” a foothold -- in Turkey back then it was the PKK, in Syria today it is the 'Free Syrian Army'. The United States during this time supplied Turkey with an unprecedented amount of military hardware and ordnance which was decisive in enabling them to carry out that highly destructive campaign.
The United States along with the other bloc of the Security Council (the U.S. - Western Europe bloc that favours condemning Assad and have contemplated intervention on the side of the oppositional elements) should stop trampling upon the collective and cooperative ability and resolve of the international community to broker a ceasefire by providing effective humanitarian aid to the Syrian civilians who are caught in the crossfire and are struggling to survive. This would be a more humanistic approach that wouldn't constitute aggression against the Syrian state -- which the funneling of arms to the Syrian opposition by U.S. regional allies does.
It is clear that the Iranian Revolutionary Guards have advisers on the ground in Syria providing the Assad regime with means in which to suppress and crush insurrections across the country. They are also more than likely aiding the Syrian Republican Guard in cyber-related activities – most likely in order to prevent the organization of anti-regime demonstrations in Damascus, etc.
We should tell the truth about Assad and his heinous crimes and exploits, but we should also comprehend and recognize the variety of factors that shape these decisions that are being made by the China and Russia bloc of the Security Council as well as the ones of the Iranian regime -- which is trying its utmost to 'cash in' on the ongoing hysteria over that 18-minute anti-Islamic film, which has offended some Muslims in Egypt, Libya and Yemen, by increasing the amount of its silly bounty on Salman Rushdies head.
Condemning the presiding regime in Tehran for its support and aid to Assad is pointless and counterproductive, what would be productive would be to officially support the likes of the brave Bahraini human rights activist Abdulhadi Khawaja (whose courage and determination should have made him a household name in the part of the world that prescribes to value the spread of democracy). We should do that instead of pointing the finger at the current rioters and malcontents who are trying to justify their petty vandal behaviour by stating it is a direct result of them being deeply offended by that inflammatory film. The 'enlightened' and supposedly 'civilized' and 'liberal' west really needs a more educated and deeper outlook on such developments, instead of an outlook shaped on hollow perceptions and shallow obscurantists. Such outlooks -- depressingly -- have once again prevailed in the mainstream.
The Iranian regime with its pathetic attempts of masquerading to be Islamic discreetly welcomes the mental formation of such misleading misconceptions, which is why it embraces and encourages such obscurantist Islamists wherever they sprout up, to foster the said hollow perceptions and in turn sully and demonise Muslims everywhere.
Operating behind-the-scenes while the western mainstream shines its narrow spotlight on these jesters are the true Iranians, the patriots, whose forefathers pioneered the pivotal ideas that built the foundations of civilization that people the world over take for granted.
These are the people who will be the first to put their lives on the line and fight off any attackers and defend their homeland. Any person professing to be civilized should deeply respect these people as they are the ones that should represent Iran for what it truly is. We should stop energizing and exciting the theocrats with our contempt for them, and instead energize and encourage the true nationalist and patriots of Persia with our support and heartfelt understanding.
China, Russia and the Iranian regime should not be condemned for their policies vis-á-vis Syria.
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| China and Russia have vetoed Security Council Resolutions condemning Assad. |
In the midst of such horrors it is essential that one gauges ones condemnation soberly. Looking at Iran's relation to all of this one easily can see the heavy realpolitik motive of the regime supporting its only real ally in the region, even if such realpolitik renders its rhetoric utterly nonsensical.
Similarly the Russia and China's vetoing the United Nations Security Council Resolutions condemning Mr. Assad are understandable, and don't constitute aggression against the Syrian people. Russian arms supplies to Syria since this crisis began haven't increased nor decreased, the Russians are simply steadily supplying spare parts to the Syrian military, the Syrian military isn't being supplied with any new military hardware -- let alone any new hardware in bulk -- to enable it to enhance its abiliy to seek out and eliminate the various insurgent groups across the war ravaged state.
In the broader outlook being presented to us about the Syrian conflict a lot of attention is focused in particular on Assad's brutal means of suppression and the sectarian makeup of the country, hence the idea that the Alawaii minority is being pitted against the Sunni majority. An often neglected feature of the country's ethnic makeup is that of its Kurdish population, which constitutes about 8% of the total population.
The Syrian Kurds are currently in a de-facto truce with the regime. An interesting feature of their outlook on this whole thing is their total bewilderment at the idea of Turkey caring in the slightest of human rights for Syrians after the way the Kurds have been treated at the hands of the Turks in the past. In fact the Syrian Kurds have made it clear that it will fight on the side of the regime if Turkey militarily intervenes in the conflict – which it would probably do under the pretext of a humanitarian intervention to establish humanitarian safe zones in order to protect civilians against Assad's forces.
In the 1990's during the conflict between the Turkish state and the PKK the Turks (after declaring the Kurds to be their own people) carried out an extensive campaign against the predominately Kurdish populated south-eastern Turkey. This campaign saw to – among other sordid exploits – the killing of 50,000 Kurds and the destruction of some 3,000 villages – several of which were completely obliterated from the air -- which in turn saw to the displacement of some 2 million Kurds. All of this was done under the same pretext that Assad is using for his oppressive means, to deny the “terrorists” a foothold -- in Turkey back then it was the PKK, in Syria today it is the 'Free Syrian Army'. The United States during this time supplied Turkey with an unprecedented amount of military hardware and ordnance which was decisive in enabling them to carry out that highly destructive campaign.
The United States along with the other bloc of the Security Council (the U.S. - Western Europe bloc that favours condemning Assad and have contemplated intervention on the side of the oppositional elements) should stop trampling upon the collective and cooperative ability and resolve of the international community to broker a ceasefire by providing effective humanitarian aid to the Syrian civilians who are caught in the crossfire and are struggling to survive. This would be a more humanistic approach that wouldn't constitute aggression against the Syrian state -- which the funneling of arms to the Syrian opposition by U.S. regional allies does.
It is clear that the Iranian Revolutionary Guards have advisers on the ground in Syria providing the Assad regime with means in which to suppress and crush insurrections across the country. They are also more than likely aiding the Syrian Republican Guard in cyber-related activities – most likely in order to prevent the organization of anti-regime demonstrations in Damascus, etc.
We should tell the truth about Assad and his heinous crimes and exploits, but we should also comprehend and recognize the variety of factors that shape these decisions that are being made by the China and Russia bloc of the Security Council as well as the ones of the Iranian regime -- which is trying its utmost to 'cash in' on the ongoing hysteria over that 18-minute anti-Islamic film, which has offended some Muslims in Egypt, Libya and Yemen, by increasing the amount of its silly bounty on Salman Rushdies head.
Condemning the presiding regime in Tehran for its support and aid to Assad is pointless and counterproductive, what would be productive would be to officially support the likes of the brave Bahraini human rights activist Abdulhadi Khawaja (whose courage and determination should have made him a household name in the part of the world that prescribes to value the spread of democracy). We should do that instead of pointing the finger at the current rioters and malcontents who are trying to justify their petty vandal behaviour by stating it is a direct result of them being deeply offended by that inflammatory film. The 'enlightened' and supposedly 'civilized' and 'liberal' west really needs a more educated and deeper outlook on such developments, instead of an outlook shaped on hollow perceptions and shallow obscurantists. Such outlooks -- depressingly -- have once again prevailed in the mainstream.
The Iranian regime with its pathetic attempts of masquerading to be Islamic discreetly welcomes the mental formation of such misleading misconceptions, which is why it embraces and encourages such obscurantist Islamists wherever they sprout up, to foster the said hollow perceptions and in turn sully and demonise Muslims everywhere.
Operating behind-the-scenes while the western mainstream shines its narrow spotlight on these jesters are the true Iranians, the patriots, whose forefathers pioneered the pivotal ideas that built the foundations of civilization that people the world over take for granted.
These are the people who will be the first to put their lives on the line and fight off any attackers and defend their homeland. Any person professing to be civilized should deeply respect these people as they are the ones that should represent Iran for what it truly is. We should stop energizing and exciting the theocrats with our contempt for them, and instead energize and encourage the true nationalist and patriots of Persia with our support and heartfelt understanding.
