Gearing up for the decisive battle in Idlib, Syria, 64-year-old Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan defied Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani re-supplying Idlib’s rebels and terrorists. Idlib has become rebels and terrorists last stand after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad drove them from their hideouts and safe havens inside Syria. Turkey has been seeking to topple al-Assad since Damascus joined the Saudi’s Arab Spring March 15, 2011, looking for regime change in Damascus. It’s no secret that the U.S., Turkey and European Union did everything possible to get rid of al-Assad, only to watch their fortunes evaporate after Putin joined al-Assad’s fight with air support Sept. 30, 2015. Former President Barack Obama spent at least six years joining Turkey and the Saudis seeking to rid Damascus of 53-year-old Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Unlike Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, Syria pushed backed with Russian, Iranian and Hezbollah help against the seven-year-old Saudi-U.S.-Turkey-funded proxy war. Giving arms-and-cash to Syrian rebels before al-Assad’s final assault on Damascus shows that Turkey backs the Saudi proxy war, responsible for nearly 500,000 civilians deaths, with 12-million more displaced to Mideast countries and Europe. Syria’s civil war threatens to break up the European Union, causing the U.K. to bail out in the June 23 infamous Brexit vote. Syria’s civil war, backed by Saudi Arabia, the U.S. and Turkey, has caused the worst refugee crisis since WW II. Yet for some bizarre reason, Western allies think they have the right to undermine al-Assad’s U.N.-recognized sovereign government. Even 71-year-old U.N. Special peace envoy Staffan de Mistura backs the Saudi proxy war to oust al-Assad.
Turkey’s brazen move to re-supply Syrian rebels, once called the Free Syrian Army, then Syrian Democratic Forces and now Turkish-backed FSA fighters called “The National Front for Liberation,” flies in the face of Russia, Iran and Hezbollah. As the Syrian and Russian air forces bomb militant positions around Idlib and Hama provinces, Erdogan decides to re-supply the National Front. “They pledged complete Turkish military support for a long, protracted battle,” said an unnamed FSA commander. It’s doubtful Turkey will supply anything more than arms-and-cash in the upcoming battle, certainly not regular Turkish troops. “The Turks are making sure they have enough munitions that keep them going for a long while,” added the FSA official, not saying whether Turkey would actually join the fight. There’s zero reason to believe Turkey will do anything more than give cash-and-arms.
When you consider the U.S. and EU concerns about mass civilian casualties, it’s hard to wrap your head around giving rebels-and-terrorist more arms to fight al-Assad. Al-Assad has put Syria’s rebels and terrorists on notice that he won’t spare them any mercy unless they lay down their arms and leave Syria. Erdogan’s move, most likely backed by the U.S. and EU, creates a suicide mission for FSA militants and the 3.5 civilians living in Idlib province. With Russian air power and Iranian ground forces, Syrian rebels and terrorists have no chance to prevail in Idlib. Unlike President Donald Trump, former President Barack Obama, together with the late Sen. John McCain, backed the Sauid proxy war for six years. Trump warned al-Assad about using chemical weapons but, essentially, gave him the green light to take any-and-all measures needed to defend his national sovereignty.
Continuing the Saudi proxy war, Erdogan shows he’s now become a surrogate for the U.S. and EU. Most members of the House and Senate Armed Services Committee want to topple al-Assad, regardless of consequences to with Russia. Putin has firmly aligned himself with al-Assad, believing the Syrian dictator is preferred over the Iraq-like anarchy that would ensure from Syrian regime change. Giving rebels and jihadists more weapons to continue the Saudi proxy war only prolongs the worst humanitarian crisis since WW II. Erdogan can’t possibly believe that supplying light arms and grad rockets to rebels can stop the Syrian army and Russian air force from defending al-Assad. All military analyses point toward Syria rebels losing their fight in battle against Syrian, Russiand and Iranian militaries.
If there’s a humanitarian disaster looming in Idlib, it’s because Saudi Arabia,Turkey, the U.S. and EU continue to pretend they can topple al-Assad. “The Turks are making sure they have enough munitions that keep them going for a long time,” said the anonymous FSA official. Arms-and-cash won’t stop Syria from defending its borders, something any state would do to preserve its sovereignty. White House officials should make it clear to Erdogan that the U.S. no longer supports a failed proxy war in Idlib. Bracing for the worst, the U.S., Turkey and EU have blood on their hands continuing to supply arms-and-cash to Syrian rebels to continue the Saudi proxy war. If the U.S., EU and Turkey wanted to stop the bloodshed, they’d find an exit strategy for Syrian rebels using Idlib as their last safe haven in Syria. However high the death toll rises, the U.S., EU and Turkey have no one to blame but themselves.
