Meeting with Belgium Prime Minister Charles Michael, Secretary of State John Kerry promised to help “thwart” foreign fighters in Europe, now infiltrating immigrant communities and planning more attacks. When Islamic State of Iraq and Syria [ISIS] terrorists struck Brussels’ Zaventem International Airport and metro train March 22 two blocks from European Union headquarters killing 31 and injuring 200, a link was made to Nov. 13, 2015 Paris attacks. ISIS terrorists killed 130, injuring hundreds more, in three coordinated attacks around Paris, detonating suicide vests and opening fire with automatic rifles at restaurants and the Bataclan concert hall. “This is one of the parts of the war that we are fighting. We have an entire focus on foreign fighters,” Kerry told NBC News today. Kerry mentioned nothing of yesterday’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
When Kerry talks of “thwarting” foreign fighters, he’s referring to the hundreds, if not thousands, of ISIS terrorists returning from Syria to European cities, melting back into immigrant communities where they largely go undetected. ISIS attacks in Paris established close links to terrorists in Brussels, where attacks where coordinated by terrorists living in the Molenbeek district. Brussels’ massacre occurred only four days after Beligum authorities captured Salah Abdesalam, one of the Paris terrorists that disappeared after the Nov. 13 attacks. “In fact, a month ago, here in Belgium, we had a foreign fighters search team here working with the Belgians in order to try to make sure that they were dealing appropriately with this potential at any time in the future,” said Kerry, the most basic question of ending the Syrian war. Without the Syrian war, it’s doubtful foreign fighters would be streaming into Europe.
Kerry’s approach, like that of the Obama administration, is largely to apply law enforcement strategies to intercept terror before it occurs. Dispatched by Obama to Moscow to meet with Putin in Moscwo, Kerry hoped to bring U.N. special envoy Staffan de Mistura some good news in Geneva. Watching Putin announce a Russian troop withdrawal March 14, Obama hoped Putin was ready to throw Syrian President Bashar al-Assad under the bus. White House officials rubber stamp the five-year-old Saudi proxy war trying to topple al-Assad’s Shiite government. Faced with relentless pressure by Saudi Foreign Minster Adel al-Jubeir’s High Negotiation Committee, Kerry, once again, begged Putin for a “transition” strategy with al-Assad. Kerry agreed Dec. 15, 2015 with Putin to leave al-Assad alone yet continues to ask about regime change. Instead of confronting the Saudis, Kerry begs Putin getting rid of al-Assad.
Letting Saudi Arabia and Turkey prosecute a proxy war to topple al-Assad for the last five years have added to the 250,000 dead and millions driven into neighboring countries and Europe. More than a law enforcement issues, ending the Saudi-funded proxy war in Syria requires the White House to stand up to Saudi Arabia. It’s not up to Putin to betray and longstanding ally but for the U.S. to finally get on the right side of the issue. Putin told Obama and Kerry directly Dec. 15, 2015, as he did the U.N. General Assembly Sept. 28, 2015, that removing al-Assad would repeat the same mistakes in Iraq and Libya, destabilize the region and lead to more terrorism. Kerry can’t explain to Putin why Syria would be better off without al-Assad, other than saying the Saudis and Turks want him out. Rooting out terrorist nests in European cities won’t end the Saudi-funded Syrian proxy war.
Since the U.S. and Russia helped broker the Feb. 27 Syria ceasefire, violence in war zone has been slowed. Saudi and U.S.-backed opposition groups were on the verge of being wiped out by Russian air strikes before the Saudis signaled to Kerry they were ready for temporary truce. Al-Jubeir has warned de Mistura that if al-Assad doesn’t agree to a “transitional” plan, the opposition groups would resume fighting. Kerry got no commitment from Putin on any transition plan to see al-Assad step down. Syrian officials have refused to deal with any discussion of regime change with de Mistura’s Geneva peace talks. Kerry’s caught between a rock-and-hard-place because he refuses to tell Saudi Arabia to stand down. If Saudi opposition groups, like Jaysh al-Islam, resume the war, Putin wouldn’t hesitate to hit them hard again. Putin’s temporary withdrawal was a sign of good faith.
White House officials are in no position to “thwart” foreign fighters from committing more terror attacks in Europe or anywhere else. While there’s nothing wrong with better law enforcement, either at home or abroad, the White House has failed to deny ISIS of its safe haven in Iraq and Syria. As long as ISIS continues to recruit foreign terrorists, more will return to Europe to commit mayhem. Saying Obama is “upping what were are doing in Syria,” Kerry gives little reassurance talking about improved law enforcement. Only a more focused commitment to end the Syrian war can help reduce the amount of foreign fighters returning to Europe. Supplying more arms, Special Forces and training to the Iraqis and Kurds to evict ISIS from their safe haven in Syria and Iraq, can eventually reduce the foreign terrorists now plaguing Europe and threatening to take the battle to the U.S.
