In recent weeks, Vladimir Putin hosted successive delegations of foreign leaders from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, British Prime Minister David Cameron, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon. With Moscow as the new address to find a solution to the Syrian civil war, what are the likely scenarios that will play out in the Middle East? Matthew RJ Brodsky joins Morris Jones for wide-ranging interview on “Capital Insider.”
Brodsky explains that Russia has made itself indispensable for finding a solution to the Syrian civil war because it continues to support the Assad regime diplomatically and militarily, and has been the chief spoiler of Western efforts to find a political solution to the Syrian quagmire. He explains the different talking points carried by world leaders to Russia, and differentiates between American and Israeli concerns.
The peace summit set for June known as Geneva 2 was the outgrowth of John Kerry’s visit with Putin. Brodsky believes that conference has a very low probability of success. “It’s hard to see how Bashar Assad can remain in power after butchering north of 80,000 of his own countrymen,” he posited. With Russia also calling for Iran to attend the summit, Brodsky likens it to “the fox guarding the hen house” where the two powers propping up the Assad regime and delivering military support will pretend that they are actually seeking to play a constructive role in ending the conflict.
Brodsky also gives an update on the latest saber-rattling between Syria and Israel and explains why for different reasons, an open war with Israel at the moment would likely not serve Syria, Iran, or Hezbollah’s interests. Finally, he discusses the weapon systems Russia and Iran are pouring into Syria and why the S-300 surface-to-air system that Putin plans to furnish Assad with should be considered a game-changer.
