The State and Future of the Middle East ~ Charles Krauthammer
©Natalie Keshing
Editor-in-Chief
http://www.natswritings.com
On a map, atlas or globe the Middle East was and is an important part of our global history. Many Middle Eastern events have taken place to shape the narrative of the politics and the extreme danger, terror and murder ISIS has committed and proliferated to many major European countries including the United States.
Tensions are rising, the US-led coalition carried out 15 strikes consisting of 69 engagements against ISIS (Daesh) in Syria and Iraq on Monday, June 19th.
The Australian Department of Defense has temporarily cease strikes in Syria following the US downing of a Syrian jet over the weekend.
There are many countries embroiled in this war specifically fighting against Asaad’s regime, ISIS and the Taliban in Afghanistan. Each country has taken sides and then you add the history of the Shi’ides the Alawites, ISIS, Taliban and the Sunnis and it does make for a very complicated state of affairs and danger to the world.
Charles Krauthammer’s astute mind has shed a very important light of how this war could play out.
Charles Krauthammer is an American syndicated columnist, author, political commentator, and non-practicing physician whose weekly column is syndicated to more than 400 publications worldwide.
Charles has an uncanny view and extraordinary knowledge of the history and politics in Middle Eastern countries. Presently, the Middle Eastern politics are strategically placed on a chessboard. Today, a Russian military plane came within 5 feet from a US military plane. ~ Natalie
This past February President Trump said, “The world is a mess. I inherited a mess. Whether it’s the Middle East, whether it’s North Korea. Whether it’s so many other things.”
Charles Krauthammer said, “In the last year of WWII, we were all fighting the Nazis but we knew they were finished. And a lot of the maneuvering in that last year was between us and the Soviet side, for what it would look like after the Nazis were finished.”
“Right now ISIS, which is the main enemy, is about to be driven out of Mosul which will mean that Iraq has been clear of them. The encircling of Raqqa, their last stronghold based in Syria, within 6 months to a year, both of them will be gone. Everybody knows that.”
“So what’s going on right now in the Syria is the maneuvering. The Iranians want to inherit the territory that’s going to be lost by ISIS and they showed that today by launching rockets over Iraq and into Syria, ostensibly at ISIS, as a retaliation for the terror attacks but really a demonstration for Saudi Arabia, the Sunni Arabs and of everybody in the region; of their reach.”
“The Iranian objective, is to inherit the territory of ISIS which gives them control of the entire northern part of the Middle East from Iran through Iraq through Syria to the Mediterranean. The Persians have not had that in 2,000 years and it is within their grabs. So the Russians, the Iranians, the Syrian regime are all on one side and the maneuver is to make sure they get the territory that ISIS loses.
“Our interest is to make sure that doesn’t happen. That’s why we attacked the forces of Assad who were hitting our alleys on the ground, who are the Kurds, the Syrian rebels, who together with the Kurds are closing in on Raqqa.”
“Are objective in the region; it is simple. We don’t want to see Assad have a puppet regime which will be run by Iran and Russia in control of all of Syria. We don’t want them to inherit the ISIS territory. We would like to see that held by pro-western, pro-Saudi, Sunni forces. That would mean, one settlement would be that you get a rump regime in Damascus running the west side of Syria essentially.Where as the middle of Syria is controlled by the rebels.”
“That is a far more advantageous strategic ending to all of this. This is high level chess. If Assad and the Russians decide the war it is not winnable. Assad is a minority sect. Very much hated in the area, maybe 10% essentially is affiliated with the Shi’ides the Alawites.”
“For it to control all of Syria perpetually is perpetual war, it’s not in the Russian interest. The Russians might accept a settlement in which there’s a de facto division of the country into ethnic enclaves. Which would probably be for the Syrian people and for us the best outcome.” ~ Charles Krauthammer