Frustrated by months of failure in Syria, the Obama administration is taking what might be its final offer to Moscow: Enhanced intelligence and military cooperation against the Islamic State and other extremist groups if Syria’s Russian-backed president Bashar Assad upholds a ceasefire with U.S.-supported rebel groups and starts a political transition, the Washington Post reported Wednesday, July 13.
Does that sound like black mail to you? It sure reads that way to me! The US will share intelligence on it's proxy army IS and it's other proxy armies "extremist groups" if and only if Assad upholds a ceasefire and begins to exit his office
When Secretary of State John Kerry meets Russia’s top diplomat and possibly President Vladimir Putin in Moscow later this week, Syria’s civil war and Assad’s future will top the agenda. Kerry is trying to reverse a trend in which he has hailed a series of agreements with the Russians only for them to fall short, according to officials with knowledge of internal American deliberations.The officials said Kerry is dangling in front of the Kremlin Russia’s long-sought requests for intelligence sharing and targeting assistance in return for Russia using its influence to end the fighting and start ushering Assad out of power. But Kerry will be wary about offering too much.
"Dangling" nice word choice
The talks in Moscow are scheduled fewer than three weeks before an August ultimatum for diplomatic progress.
“The target date for the transition is 1st of August,” Kerry told reporters two months ago, hoping to get Russia and Syria to halt military operations. “So either something happens in these next few months or they are asking for a very different track.”
Black mail and then threats! That's some kind of diplomacy!
The U.S. is now offering more robust military cooperation against IS and the Nusra Front, Syria’s al-Qaida branch, and information to help Russia target affiliated militants. Kerry won’t go as far as to suggest joint U.S.-Russian operations, according to the American officials, who weren’t authorized to speak on the matter and demanded anonymity, The Wshington Post says.
"The US is now offering more robust military cooperation against IS and the Nusra Front"???That's an acknowledgement that the US has only been half heartedly/ hardly/ not at all/cooperating in the fight against IS and the Nusra Front. Makes you wonder what the US has been doing? (Facetious, again)
“We have teed up ideas to the Russians,” State Department spokesman John Kirby told reporters Tuesday, saying the Moscow discussions would be an indicator of Russia’s sincerity.
"The talks in Moscow are scheduled fewer than three weeks before an August ultimatum for diplomatic progress. All signs augur poorly for a breakthrough.
Fighting is intensifying near Aleppo, Syria’s largest city. Assad has reasserted control over more areas of the country he had once lost"
“The target date for the transition is 1st of August,” Kerry told reporters two months ago, hoping to get Russia and Syria to halt military operations. “So either something happens in these next few months or they are asking for a very different track.”
But as added carrots, ( dangling carrots- very derogatory wording) the U.S. is now offering more robust military cooperation against IS and the Nusra Front, Syria’s al-Qaida branch, and information to help Russia target affiliated militants. Kerry won’t go as far as to suggest joint U.S.-Russian operations, according to the American officials, who weren’t authorized to speak on the matter and demanded anonymity.
WaPo continues
"Russia’s bombers also have attacked anti-Assad rebel groups that have received weapons, training and other forms of support from the U.S. and allies such as Saudi Arabia" (No mention of Turkey supporting the rebel groups only Saudi Arabia- curious)
And, as a dissent cable signed by 51 State Department officials illustrated last month, a sizeable part of America’s diplomatic establishment believe a U.S. military response is necessary to resolve the Syrian conflict, given Moscow’s increased leverage through its presence on the ground.
Ah, yes the State Department memo ... Let's rehash that together shall we?First:
The U.S. Air Force is ready to create a no-fly zone in Syria, as stated by General David Goldfein, Rosbalt reported.
According to him, there are three conditions necessary to introduce a no-fly zone. First, is the permission to shoot down all planes that enter the no-fly zone, including Russian ones.
You can, of course, read the other conditions at the link aboveSecond:
-
Syrian/Turkish No Fly Zone- To Help ‘fight’ ISIS?
" I suggested yesterday that by putting the blame on ISIS, the implementation of the Syrian No Fly Zone could be triggered- Read: Attack On Istanbul: Ataturk Airport- The Death Toll Climbs: Updated To battle ISIS in Syria and to assist Turkey with border control - At least that will be the lie told via the war mongering/agenda promoting media"
Third & final point: hattip anonymous linkie person! (links are so handy)
“We will provide AWACS support and the plan is to have them to flying over international airspace and Turkey and that will allow us to look into airspace in Iraq and Syria,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference July 9. “This is a clear signal of our resolve to help tackle terrorism.” The planes are one of the few concrete assets that NATO has, with most of its military hardware belonging to individual member states.
AWACS are aircraft with powerful radars that allow them to monitor airspace for hun-dreds of kilometers around. They can also be converted into command posts to coordinate bombing raids and other air operations.
Could the no fly zone be the 'or else' to Russia?From the past 24 hours: