According to Saeed Naqvi, the speed with which circumstances have weakened American authority everywhere else, with the possible exception of the United Kingdom, is stunning.
The fact that Volodymyr Zelenskyy made an appearance at the Arab League Summit in Jeddah, which was held to witness Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad reoccupy his chair in the League, seems to have been missed on most people. The irony of Zelenskyy’s presence seems to have been overlooked. Arab leaders, used to the hegemony of the United States, have shifted their allegiances because they are persuaded of the demise of the United States. Syria is the recipient of the benefits of this evaluation.
The United States was brought to its knees in a manner that was most embarrassing after having occupied Afghanistan for 20 years and having total authority over Iraq for 10 years. How did they come up with the idea that they might bring about a change in the regime in Damascus by getting other Arab countries in the region to participate in cross-border terrorism? Another term for these kinds of actions is “proxy war,” which has not managed to hurt Vladimir Putin just yet.
Syria’s old biblical sites were demolished at the same time that they were destroying Ukraine. Nevertheless, Western efforts to undermine the rule were unsuccessful, as evidenced by a number of incidents. Take, for instance, the line of questioning that General Lloyd Austin was put through by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations because of his disastrous handling of a $500 million effort to train “moderate militants” who would then go on the offensive against Assad’s army. The events that took place have elements of both comedy and tragedy.
After enduring rigorous training and being provided with pricey armament, the warriors fighting for the Free World fled under the cover of darkness with their arsenal of weapons and ammo. The treacherous recruits in the ranks of Jabal al Nusra, which represented ghoulish Islamism on the same scale as Al Qaeda or the Islamic State, were followed by intelligence agencies. At that time, General Austin, who is currently the Secretary of Defence, served as the commander in charge of the training.
During the proceedings in front of the Senate, Austin was questioned with the following: “How many of the militants trained by us are still fighting for our cause?” Austin was at a loss for words. After a considerable gap, he mumbled something. “Four or five,” she said. The current Secretary of Defence under Obama, Ashton Carter, was seen crying in front of many cameras.
The lesson that Zelensky ought to have learned from this situation is that entrenched regimes are not susceptible to overthrow through proxy warfare, and Vladimir Putin possesses significantly more power than Assad does.
It is impossible to remove Putin from power through a proxy conflict.
The other important thing for Kyiv to learn is that attitudes in the Arab world have shifted recently. The entrance of Assad in Jeddah was not a subdued affair at all. Along the entire path, the flag of Syria waved in the breeze. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has come to the astute realisation that the efforts to topple Assad have been unsuccessful. The intervention of the Russian government in 2015 was a significant headwind for the progress of the enterprise.
In terms of brazenness, the Russian participation in Syria was comparable to Russia’s takeover of the Pristina airport in 1999, just a little bit before NATO took control of it. A confrontation was averted, and since 1999, the Pristina airport has served as a singular location where Russia and NATO can coexist.
The commander of NATO, General Wesley Clark, was intent on bringing about a change in the situation at the airport. His Deputy Mike Jackson, who was serving with the British force in NATO, defied Clark by refusing to obey him. “I will not provoke World War III on your behalf,” I told him. My opinion is that the “Sole Super Power” mentality was first shown in the military with General Clark’s almost uncontrollable rage and his determination to teach the Russians a lesson. This was the earliest military representation of the attitude.
Due to the fact that this obscure event that took place in remote Kosovo had become so problematic, Secretary of State Madeline Albright encouraged her Chief of Policy Planning Morton Halperin to initiate a comprehensive investigation into the recent history of Kosovo. Richard Ullman, a scholar friend of Halperin’s from Princeton, was asked by Halperin to take the helm of the study for which space was made available within the State Department. The important thing to take away from this is that Russia did not back down even when the Sole Super Power announced its coming. 1995 marked the beginning of NATO’s active involvement in the conflict. At this time, Serb atrocities committed against Kosovo’s Muslim population were at their highest. That’s a very other tale.
Zelensky’s retaliatory actions have already taken into account the Southern Slavic ethnic linkages that exist between Russians and Serbs, as well as their shared affinity with the Orthodox Church. For example, he gave the order for the Orthodox Priests to vacate the Kyiv Church compound, which dates back hundreds of years. It is asserted that these Priests and worshippers have connections with Churches located in Moscow. This is a delicate topic to discuss. There is a good chance that Zelensky will attempt to escalate the conflict in Ukraine in the Balkans.
Since it is presumed that the United States is still directing Zelensky’s actions, the question arises as to whether or not, in an act of desperation, he may unilaterally expand the battle outside of Ukraine, possibly even into the Balkans. I suppose that Vice President Biden is so distracted with internal difficulties that he will not have the attention span to improvise on Ukraine, particularly given the fact that the script so far has gone dreadfully against all of the media’s boast and bluster about how things are going to turn out.
In point of fact, Zelensky ought to be aware of the fact that the entirety of the Arab World has defected from the camp of the United States for a very straightforward reason. With international leaders such as Emanuel Macron already moving towards a world order that does not include Western domination, any remaining optimism that the United States will maintain its hegemonic position has been extinguished. Arabs, Africans, Latin Americans, and even South Asians have all become accustomed to the existence of a multipolar world in their lifetimes. This helps to explain the warming of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran as well as Syria’s readmission to the Arab League. After the results of the Turkish election are published on May 28, there is the possibility of a rapprochement between Ankara and Damascus.
The lightning-fast pace at which events have eased American dominance worldwide, probably with the exception of the United Kingdom, leaves me gasping for air. In this very specific situation, it is extremely difficult to determine who is in control of whom. Are the recollections of Empire and waning imperialism in competition with one another?
Permit me to install myself in the office of Bouthaina Shaaban, Assad’s most refined counsel, which is located in the Presidential Palace. In Homs, Hama, and Dera, I have seen the United States Ambassador Stephen Ford and his French counterpart join forces with opposition groups. “Don’t you have any ground rules for diplomats?” The response given by Bouthaina is incredible. “This just goes to show how permeable we are.” That happened twelve years ago.
Ed Peck, who served in the role of US Ambassador to West Asia in the past, made a statement that I almost feel compelled to paraphrase.
“I have been dismayed by the accolades and support given to Ambassador Ford, our man in — and now out of — Syria for actively encouraging the revolt/insurrection/sectarian strife/outside meddling,”