MR Comments On a Syrian Peace Deal
Assad can go eff himself:
Syrian President Bashar Assad said in comments released Sunday that his nation wants "peace with Israel" and welcomed U.S. intervention in the region. But he also said Washington must listen to what people in the Middle East think if it wants positive change in the region. At the same time, in an interview with Monday's edition of Der Spiegel weekly magazine, Assad blamed U.S. policies in the region for "contributing to hopelessness in our country, and to silencing the dialogue between cultures." Only when the U.S. government considers the point of view of individual nations in the region will it be able to make progress, he was quoted as saying. "America must listen," Assad said. "It must listen to the interests of others." Assad compared Washington's approach to the war on terrorism to "a doctor constantly banging away at a tumor instead of removing it surgically."
And of course, he'd know about how to treat tumors, being a skilled doctor and all. But seriously, he can go eff himself. There is not a single incentive - not a single one - for Israel to trade the Golan Heights for a peace deal with Syria. It's already giving them too much credit to go over the reasons why not, but it'll have to be done at some point:
(1) Economic normalization - the country is a third world backwater
(2) Cultural normalization - hasn't worked with Egypt, which is far more modern than Syria has ever been
(3) Political normalization - it's a joke. Not even Jordan hesitates to pull their ambassador whenever the mood strikes them, to obviously say nothing of the cold peace Egyptians
(4) Military normalization - please. Last time Israel decided to roll up a newspaper and smack Syria on the nose by bombing Syrian radar stations, Syria didn't even bother scrambling their jets. Because they like their jets, and didn't want to lose them.
(5) Hezbollah - the only good argument that's ever existed for giving the Golan to Syria. Syria held Hezbollah over Israel's throat for years and years. The single best justification for leaving Lebanon in 2000 was to remove this card from Assad's deck - and Israel had to put up with Nasrallah's insufferable crowing as the least of the costs. The other cost, of course, was the deterrence hit that Israel took and the deployment of Hezbollah and its rockets to South Lebanon. But - and there's no nice way to say this - giving up the Golan is not worth the slim possibility that Hezbollah will stop trying/managing to kidnap five soldiers every five years. Additionally, we frankly don't think that Hezbollah can get away with dragging Lebanon into another war. The next Prime Minister will either be a general from Kadima or a Likudnik (or a Laborite that can't afford to look like she's getting pushed around) - the invasion will come much sooner. Plus, Damascus can't call Nasrallah off - he answers to his masters in Tehran now.
So Syria has absolutely nothing to offer Israel in exchange for the incalculable strategic and cultural value of the Golan. Obviously, given that fact, peacenik Yossi Beilin supports land for peace negotiations with Syria. Because he's a total clown.
Syrian President Bashar Assad said in comments released Sunday that his nation wants "peace with Israel" and welcomed U.S. intervention in the region. But he also said Washington must listen to what people in the Middle East think if it wants positive change in the region. At the same time, in an interview with Monday's edition of Der Spiegel weekly magazine, Assad blamed U.S. policies in the region for "contributing to hopelessness in our country, and to silencing the dialogue between cultures." Only when the U.S. government considers the point of view of individual nations in the region will it be able to make progress, he was quoted as saying. "America must listen," Assad said. "It must listen to the interests of others." Assad compared Washington's approach to the war on terrorism to "a doctor constantly banging away at a tumor instead of removing it surgically."
And of course, he'd know about how to treat tumors, being a skilled doctor and all. But seriously, he can go eff himself. There is not a single incentive - not a single one - for Israel to trade the Golan Heights for a peace deal with Syria. It's already giving them too much credit to go over the reasons why not, but it'll have to be done at some point:
(1) Economic normalization - the country is a third world backwater
(2) Cultural normalization - hasn't worked with Egypt, which is far more modern than Syria has ever been
(3) Political normalization - it's a joke. Not even Jordan hesitates to pull their ambassador whenever the mood strikes them, to obviously say nothing of the cold peace Egyptians
(4) Military normalization - please. Last time Israel decided to roll up a newspaper and smack Syria on the nose by bombing Syrian radar stations, Syria didn't even bother scrambling their jets. Because they like their jets, and didn't want to lose them.
(5) Hezbollah - the only good argument that's ever existed for giving the Golan to Syria. Syria held Hezbollah over Israel's throat for years and years. The single best justification for leaving Lebanon in 2000 was to remove this card from Assad's deck - and Israel had to put up with Nasrallah's insufferable crowing as the least of the costs. The other cost, of course, was the deterrence hit that Israel took and the deployment of Hezbollah and its rockets to South Lebanon. But - and there's no nice way to say this - giving up the Golan is not worth the slim possibility that Hezbollah will stop trying/managing to kidnap five soldiers every five years. Additionally, we frankly don't think that Hezbollah can get away with dragging Lebanon into another war. The next Prime Minister will either be a general from Kadima or a Likudnik (or a Laborite that can't afford to look like she's getting pushed around) - the invasion will come much sooner. Plus, Damascus can't call Nasrallah off - he answers to his masters in Tehran now.
So Syria has absolutely nothing to offer Israel in exchange for the incalculable strategic and cultural value of the Golan. Obviously, given that fact, peacenik Yossi Beilin supports land for peace negotiations with Syria. Because he's a total clown.
