Al Modon (Lebanon): Syria is a testing ground of Russia

The decision of Russia and China to veto a draft resolution of the UN Security Council on extending cross-border humanitarian assistance to Syria, which expires July 14, 2020, not a surprise. A few days ago, Russia announced its withdrawal from the mechanism deconflicting UN in Syria, which identified civilian facilities (schools, hospitals, religious buildings, etc.) in need of humanitarian assistance. Moscow explained the decision by the fact that its actions deprived West of the opportunity to create fakes in Syria on civilian facilities in need of humanitarian assistance.

Russia’s permanent representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzia said that this mechanism operated on a voluntary basis, it has not fixed the decisions of the UN Security Council or other legal grounds. Moreover, he pointed out that Russia pursued its own investigation, which has repeatedly shown that some of the objects deconflicting actually used as the headquarters of the terrorists, so they could not be assigned to humanitarian status. This was reported by the Russian newspaper “Vzglyad” at the end of last month.

The article reported that one of the objectives of the mechanism deconflicting was to build maps of objects of a humanitarian nature in Syria. But in practice, the scheme worked as follows. Any bearded man with a machine gun could call the UN office and say, a barn with those coordinates now the hospital. Tell asadistam and the Russians that if they bombed, then it will be considered a war crime. Meanwhile, intelligence discovers that the barn was never a hospital, and was the headquarters of the bearded man with the machine gun. In the end, the shed, that is, headquarters, demolition along with a bearded man, but the British press is screaming that the “evil Russian” again bombed a hospital in Idlib. According to the author, only in Aleppo at the time counted more than forty hospitals that were destroyed by the “evil Russians”. However, so many of them in the city was not even before the Syrian war.

The article continues about other causes of Russia’s withdrawal from the mechanism deconflicting UN. For example, in 2016 the UN agencies managed to conduct only two convoys in Idlib. And not because they asadisty or Russian is not allowed, and just because acted American sanctions against Syria. The author asks: “So why all this damned mechanism if necessary, if in practice it became a tool of informational blackmail, fabrication of fakes and in a comfortable position to conduct a field reconnaissance of the English-speaking humanitarian workers?”

As justification for Russia’s decision on imposing of the veto on the draft resolution of the UN Security Council on extending cross-border humanitarian aid to Syria, the author quotes the words of the famous Russian orientalist Aleksei Malashenko, who said that Moscow has used the veto because she would not enhance Turkey’s role in supplying aid to Syria. According to experts, between Russia and Turkey there is a certain lack of confidence. Moscow did not want the role of Turkey in this situation increased. Then the delivery of humanitarian aid are entirely dependent on Turkey (in the case that Moscow would allow crossing the Syrian-Turkish border more than once), and the liability will be reduced.

Malashenko believes that the blocking by Russia of the draft resolution reflected its confidence in their abilities. In addition, he denies that Syria could affect the position of Russia. But then Russia probably will be accused of braking of positive developments in Syria. It is likely that the world community will say that “in Syria the Russians can fight, and as soon as it comes to humanitarian problems.”

According to Malashenko, Americans need humanitarian corridors to bypass the Damascus due to the fact that Washington does not recognize the legitimacy of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. In addition, the Americans play up to the Turks in light of cooling relations between the presidents of the United States and Turkey, as such a gesture can be considered if not an outstretched hand, then just stretched out a finger from Washington to Ankara.

At the end of the article the author reminds that in December 2019 Russia vetoed proposed by the West resolution of the UN Security Council on Syria, which was supposed to leave three cross-border transition. Later in the UN security Council blocked the resolution on Syria.

It is noted that the blocking of the resolution of the UN Security Council to extend cross-border operations to deliver humanitarian aid to Syria, as well as access the Russian deconflicting mechanism of the UN is evidence of the failure of the Kremlin’s attempts to absolve themselves of responsibility for the failure of the peace process and to shift it to the Syrian regime.

A few days ago the French newspaper “Le Monde” published an article that said that Putin now has come the moment of truth in the middle East region, because he linked the fate of its middle East policy with Assad and trapped in a deceptive Syrian status quo. Five years after “triumphant return” of Russia to the region he continues to interfere, instead of to promote a real plan for a peaceful settlement in Syria. According to the author of the article, it is clear that the use of military force against any form of counter has become an end in itself in Syria, as all the successes of the Assad regime were recorded at the expense of the Kremlin. Thus, the situation has become like an unsolvable equation: “Without Moscow, Assad lost, and without Assad lost Moscow”.

The actions the Kremlin proves that all the talk about the peace process is nothing like maneuver to continue the Syrian war. Moreover, the above-mentioned peace process is not used in the interests of Syria and the Middle East in General, but only as another tool against the West. A few days ago, the Russian nationalist newspaper “Free press” has published an article entitled, “Putin has outsmarted the West: “Iskander” hidden in Syria, turning it into our testing ground.” It is reported that Syria has become a major testing ground for the Russian army, it will be judged according to the Minister of defence of Russia Sergey Shoigu. The head of the defense Ministry reported that a total of tests in Syria have been more than 300 samples of new weapons, as well as about 50 thousand Russian officers and generals got combat experience, including representatives from developers and manufacturers of weapons. Syria has repeatedly experienced fighter of the fifth generation su-57, T-14 “Armata”, on the bases of terrorists has tested cruise missiles “Caliber”. In terms of combat application worked for a military equipment and various kinds of ammunition, it did not come except to a strategic missile complexes “YARS”. In addition, Syria has experienced “fear and terror of the West” operatively-a tactical complex “Iskander-M”.

Also, the newspaper quoted the Russian military expert, who said that Putin once again outwitted the West with their “Iskander”, which he “hid” in Syria, where the complexes are in combat managed to bring to perfection. The need to use them on the Syrian territory has now disappeared — most of the goals amazed by the aircraft of VC. However, these tactical missile systems remain on the Russian air base “Hamim” (probably 4) and not for testing, because if you use missiles with ranges from 2 500 to 5000 km “Iskander-M” from Syria can keep a gun on US bases in Europe, and for a few seconds to get to Warsaw or Bucharest.

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