Mitt Romney was roundly mocked in March by the mainstream media and many so-called foreign policy wise men for saying Russia was America’s top “geopolitical foe.” He was accused of attempting to revive the Cold War and an derided for his lack of understanding of international nuance by those who preferred President Obama’s much cooler approach to the regime of Vladimir Putin which has included a failed “reset” and a hot microphone promise by the president that he would be able to be more “flexible” in his second term in dealing with Russia’s demands. But three months later, with Russia sending missile defense systems to Syria, it would appear that Romney’s evaluation was right on target.
The announcement on Friday that Russia would be sending advanced missiles to the beleaguered regime of Bashar al-Assad was a body blow to those who have been trying to convince the world that Putin was prepared to play ball with the West. The missiles are intended to help Assad fend off any Western intervention in Syria as the dictator continues to repress dissent and slaughter his people. The move is troubling in of itself as it will embolden Assad to stand his ground against international pressure and make any intervention to stop the humanitarian crisis there much more difficult. But it also reveals what has long been obvious to anyone paying attention to Moscow’s foreign policy ambitions in the last decade. Putin’s goal is to reconstitute as far as possible the old Soviet sphere of influence in the Middle East. As far as he is concerned, the discussion about human rights in Syria is irrelevant. Syria is his client state, and like his Soviet predecessors, he is determined to preserve it at any cost, something that will also have serious implications for the West’s attempt to stop Iran’s nuclear program. If that isn’t a geopolitical foe for the United States, then what exactly would one look like?
The missiles and the lack of a Western response to this provocation will confirm Assad in his opinion that he has nothing to lose by continuing to ruthlessly exterminate his domestic opposition. He has rightly discerned that Russian weapons as well as the material support from his allies in Iran and their Lebanese Hezbollah auxiliaries means more than all the crocodile tears being shed for the Syrian people in Washington and Western European capitals. International opprobrium is no match for a determined and bloodthirsty ruler with the backing of allies such as these.
But the consequences of Putin’s virtual guarantee of Assad’s survival are more serious than the prospect of the continuance of his family’s decades-long reign of terror. By re-planting its flag in the Middle East in this fashion, Russia is sending a message that it is willing to brutally thwart Western interests and sensibilities. This should also sober up those expecting Putin to put his weight behind Western efforts to restrain Iran’s nuclear ambitions. With a third round of negotiations of the P5+1 group with Iran set to resume this week in Moscow, there is little doubt that the Russians (along with the Chinese) will not allow the Iranians to be backed into a corner. Though they have good reason to fear an Iranian nuke, Russia’s foreign policy imperative is always to sabotage America’s interests.
After the comical failures of appeasement of Russia that have been the hallmark of the Obama administration’s approach to Europe, it seems as if Romney is far more realistic about the Putin regime than either President Obama or Secretary of State Clinton. Though Democrats assume that they have the advantage on foreign policy against the Republicans, Putin’s provocations are a reminder that an alternative to the current approach to his regime is needed.
Could someone explain to me Russia's motives? If they no longer desire the expansion of communism, why do they feel the need to antagonistically extend their influence? Is it imperialism? A desire to maintain or establish trade channels? Or is it just a relic stemming from members of an old regime that feels the need to counter everything that may be beneficial to the West? It seems that Russia would best improve itself if they joined with and cooperated with the West. If they maintain their present course, will they not eventually be snubbed by the West; especially once a U.S. President is elected with resolve?
Islamist terror is of more moment to Putin than to America. Sunni Arabs have been killing Shia Persians for 1400 years. The only intelligent response to Syria (or any other intra-muslim violence) is to let it play-out; they want to keep killing one another as they have been for centuries – let them. Putin is just ensuring no one stops the bloodletting. Kinda like no one stopped the Iran-Iraq war through an entire decade and a million lives. n nOne can look at the 20th Century as a century of America getting in the way of natural selection, to the detriment of hundreds of millions. Had Britain let Germany take Belgium & France, and had American been smart enough to stay out – the policy on which Wilson was elected, a case can be made that none of the following could have occurred: the USSR (strong Germany on its western flank preventing it), the famine/show trials/purges, WW2 ETO, the Holocaust, the PRC, Cultural Revolution, Great Leap Forward, Korean War, DPRK, French Indochina/Vietnam, French Algeria, destruction by the West of the Ottoman Empire (which would have collapsed on its own without America & Britain to blame), no France refuge for Khomeni, no Islamic Republic in Iran, no Gulf I, no Gulf-II/IRaq, no Afghanistan, no 9/11… And the only losses would have been Belgium and France as independent nations. Well, Belgians have been unable to create a gvoernment for two years, right? And France just voted to go bankrupt… n nMaybe Putin is just smarter than a West that demands to pretend that the entire world accepts Western norms…
If you are looking for a motive for Russia's attempted expansion into the Middle East look to Russian history. The have always been looking for an opening to the Mare Nostrum, as the Romans called it, and will never stop.
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result…. nThose who study history learn that it repeats itself if lessons are not learned….. n nComrade Obama's Chamberlain appeasement style of foreign policy with the former KGB member Putin is both delirious and dangerous…. n nClearly, Obama's policies are a national security nightmare…
Funny how Putin the Marxist communist sees Muslim Brotherhood and George Soros as their enemies, while Odrama Queen the Stalinist/Leninist/Marxist Communist sees Soros and and Muslim Brotherhood as his faithful ALLIES. nhhhmmmmm……… n n
"Russia sending missile defense systems to Syria" is what makes Russia "America’s top “geopolitical foe.” n nReally? Are you serious? Syria is the top geopolitical issue in the world? n nI guess Mr. Tobin never heard of the Taliban, al Qaeda, the Mideast, North Korea, Iran et al. n nSometimes, you really have to wonder what planet these columnists live on.