According to three people familiar with diplomatic sources, last week the Secretary of state Rex Tillerson during a personal meeting with UN Secretary General Antonio Guerison (Antonio Guterres) stated that the fate of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad is now in the hands of Russia. He noted that the primary task of the administration of trump is limited to the destruction of the Islamic state (a terrorist organization banned in Russia — approx. ed.).
These words marked the next stage on the bumpy political course of the United States, which has shocked international observers trying to understand whether the administration is trump to insist on Assad’s departure. Approximately three months ago, Tillerson insisted that Assad should leave his post because of alleged use of chemical weapons.
The assurance given Tillerson Guterres, attest to the growing willingness of the administration to trump to give Russia a leading role and allow her to control the situation in Syria and the politics in the background, to focus on defeating ISIS.
He also made it clear that the actions of the American forces against the forces of Assad in recent months have limited tactical objectives. They are to keep the regime from future hematic and protect supported Washington’s forces fighting the “Islamic state” in Syria. The US is not going to weaken the Assad regime or strengthen the position of the opposition forces in the negotiations.
Position Tillerson reflects the recognition that the government of Syria with the support of Russia and Iran is a likely political winner in the civil war continued in the country for six years. It also marks a further retreat from that adopted in 2012, UN-mediated Geneva communiqué. The communiqué was signed by Russia, USA and other key countries. In it they called for the establishment of a transitional government with the participation of representatives of the regime and the opposition. The Geneva agreement, according to the Obama administration and other Western allies had ultimately ensure the departure of Assad as President (although the Obama administration in the last year has relaxed its requirements for the departure of Assad).
The state Department official declined to comment on a private conversation with Tillerson Guerison, but said the U.S. remains “committed to the Geneva process” and maintain “a credible political process that can resolve the question of the future of Syria. “Ultimately this process, in our opinion, will lead to the settlement of the question of the status of the Assad regime,” — noted in the state Department.
“The Syrian people should determine the political future of their country in the political process,” — said the official Agency.
The decision to give Russia the position in the future of Assad taken on the eve of the first personal meeting between President Donald trump with the President of Russia Vladimir Putin, which will take place next week on the sidelines of the summit of “Big twenty” in Germany, in Hamburg. Moreover, now the administration trump seeks to restore relations with the Kremlin, despite a series of scandals plaguing the White house after the election trump.
Earlier this month, Tillerson said that trump instructed him to restore much of the deteriorating relations between the two countries. The Secretary also warned Congress that new sanctions against Russia for its alleged role in interfering in the American elections may undermine attempts at cooperation with Moscow on Syria.
“The President asked me to begin the process of resumption of cooperation with Russia and find out whether we will be able to stabilize these relationships so that they will not adversely impact on the future,” said Tillerson during his visit to New Zealand in early June. On this basis Tillerson “will begin to restore a level of trust” with Moscow.
Less than two months after taking office, Tillerson made it clear that he is not particularly interested in the use of force in order to force the Syrian leader to leave his post. The future of Assad, he said at the end of March, “will be up to the Syrian people.” His words have supported Nikki Haley (Nikki Haley), U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. She told reporters that “the concentration of efforts to force Assad to leave, no longer is our highest priority”.
But then, in April, Tillerson changed course, saying that “now steps” towards the removal of Assad from power through international efforts. It happened after the Assad regime committed chemical attack on civilians, which killed dozens of people. A few days later, during the summit “the Big seven” in Italy Tillerson repeated his words, warning that the reign of Assad “is coming to an end.”
“The procedure of Assad’s departure from office is a process that requires from the international community the actions directed on to first defeat ISIS in Syria and stabilize the situation in Syria to prevent civil war in the future. And then to work together with our partners worldwide by the end of the political process that will lead to the departure of Assad,” he said.
But Tillerson made it clear Guterres that the United States once again change tactics. According to one source, Tillerson during a meeting last week, said UN Secretary-General: “What will happen with Assad — the case of Russia, not the U.S. government.” The basic idea Tillerson was the official added that “the U.S. government will respond to the terrorist threat” and that they basically do not care “Assad goes or stays”.
Retreat Tillerson indicates that the state Department, making his way through thickets of tangled relations between the warring in Syria conflicting alliances, intends to circumvent the difficult ethical problem and not addressing the question of what to do with the Assad regime.
“The reason that US involved in the Syrian events is ISIS — said on Wednesday to reporters, state Department spokesman Nauert Heather (Heather Nauert). — That is what worries us and why we are there”.
Former special Advisor to the state Department on the issue of political reform in Syria Fred Hof (Hof Fred) called the administration’s position trump against Russia’s role in Syria “is unclear, leading to confusion”.
He believes that the reason is the lack of trump, a coherent, comprehensive national security strategy. “There is no single line to which all must adhere, he said. And I’m not surprised that on this issue there are many opinions and positions.”
On the transfer of Assad’s fate in hands of Russia, he said: “it is One thing to walk away from the situation and say, “Let those involved Russian.” But it is quite another thing to assume that it is possible actually to act wisely from a political point of view, hoping that the Russians will achieve good results.”
Former high-ranking U.S. officials concerned with the administration of the trump inferior to the Kremlin’s political positions in Syria, virtually nothing in return. “What we hear from the administration, mainly for the fact that the United States can offer Russia, and not Vice versa,” said Evelyn Farkas (Farkas Evelyn), a former first Deputy assistant Secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia.
According to Farkas, Moscow as a result of a number of contradictory statements on Syria have benefited. If trump will meet next week with Putin during the summit of “the Sick man of twenty” without having a clear agenda, she said, “there is a danger that the President will turn around the finger.”
