13 abril, 2017

Red Lines, Blurry Lines, No Lines



RED LINES, BLURRY LINES, NO LINES


The RED LINE.


Barack Obama drew an infamous Red Line over the use of chemical weapons by Syria´s government. The Syrians crossed the line and nothing happened. Overwhelmed by fear, outfoxed by Vladimir Putin, struggling with Congress, Obama froze. And nothing happened.

Donald Trump had no Red Lines, or otherwise. No lines. However, the moment the Syrian regime allegedly launched a limited chemical attack in Idlib province, the United States retaliated by launching a 60 Tomahawk cruise missile attack on a Syrian Arab Air Force base.

NO LINES

So, one had a clear line and did zilch. The other had no lines and attacked promptly. Where does this leave us? It leaves us with blurry lines, with a grey area of uncertainty, further undermining the credibility and reliability of the United States. This could be good to a certain extent, but, on the other hand, it can also be a conflict-enhancer; in a dubious conflict environment the safest option is to assume the worst, thus increasing the possibilities of the worst happening.

Barack Obama was outmanoeuvred by Putin in 2013, losing the trust of American allies in Europe and the Middle East.

Donald Trump wanted to show he was tough and opened the way to increase the acrimony between Moscow and Washington and to further complicate the already complex and messy Syrian war theatre.
 
BLURRY LINES

in “Airbrush Talk” at http://www.airbrushtalk.com/abtv14n2.htm




Nothing augurs well for Syria and the Blurry Lines will not help.




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