Syrian Crisis...2013

These are the comments coming out of Russia and China this morning



In addition the BBC reports that Chinese language Peoples Daily is calling for the Syrian crisis to be made an official matter for the SCO, which of course has its Heads of State Summit straight after the G20.

Making this an SCO matter is of course China coming directly together with Russia and Iran to confront the issue and it is the first time that I am aware of such a call on the SCO coming from China itself, ever!

kwaigonegin said:

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Very interesting article. Read it for what it is but I think there is certainly some truth to it.

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The article seems to know TOO MUCH internal information that I doubt its credibility. However, the whole article's main purpose is "do not start the war", and I like it.

Re Israeli anti missile system test:
It is said that the missile was a Sparrow. As it was seen from the radar system in Armavir this says something about that radar. It also shows how high the Sparrow climbs when used for this purpose that it is seen from Armavir.

Re Iran:
I think Iran will attack Israel only in answer to Israeli aggression. It doesn't make sense to attack Israel because of US aggression against Syria.

Re Putin:
There is some excitement because Putin said he might support a Security Council Resolution to condemn Syria if it had used chemical weapons. As he presumably knows that didn't happen that excitement is nonsense.

delft said:

Re Putin:
There is some excitement because Putin said he might support a Security Council Resolution to condemn Syria if it had used chemical weapons. As he presumably knows that didn't happen that excitement is nonsense.

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Re Putin

His precise words are being translated as

"be ready to act in the most decisive and serious way" if there was clear proof of what weapons were used and who used them.

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He is saying that he agrees that use of these weapons must not go unpunished and that the perpetrators must be acted against and he will not hesitate to so act. As he also has no doubt that Al Qidea affiliated rebels were responsible, it signals the direct entry of Russian forces into the Syrian conflict in an anti terrorist operation.
Shades maybe of Afghanistan, but the world has moved on from the framing of benign, cuddly Mujuhaddin. Now we would have the position of Russia fighting Al-qidea while the US is seen trying to protect them.

If you take this together with the rest of the news, it seems likely that this position will be adopted by the SCO as a regional security decision. In essence you could have two blocks, both agreeing that the guilty must be punished and prepared to take action to do it, but both blaming and acting against different sides.

SampanViking said:

Re Putin

His precise words are being translated as


He is saying that he agrees that use of these weapons must not go unpunished and that the perpetrators must be acted against and he will not hesitate to so act. As he also has no doubt that Al Qidea affiliated rebels were responsible, it signals the direct entry of Russian forces into the Syrian conflict in an anti terrorist operation.
Shades maybe of Afghanistan, but the world has moved on from the framing of benign, cuddly Mujuhaddin. Now we would have the position of Russia fighting Al-qidea while the US is seen trying to protect them.

If you take this together with the rest of the news, it seems likely that this position will be adopted by the SCO as a regional security decision. In essence you could have two blocks, both agreeing that the guilty must be punished and prepared to take action to do it, but both blaming and acting against different sides.

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Russia’s naval build up means one thing, and that is that it is committed to Assad, they dispatched a Slava Class cruiser last week and although not as technically advanced as its Western counterparts it’s a signal, the signal is that Russia has just deployed a capital warship, a flag ship of the Black Sea Fleet which means Russia is committed maybe not to Syria but to Assad

During the 1967 Arab-Israel war the Israeli army took the Golan Heights, it was never to end there, Israel had plans to push deep into Syrian territory and reach Damascus just like they did in 1973 with Cairo but they were told not to enter Syria and just to take Golan heights and stop there, the order came from the Americans because the Americans had been warned by the Soviets that if Israel does not stop at Golan heights boundary then a massive Soviet air borne division which was based at Odessa which is in modern day Ukraine would be dropped in overnight, more than 10,000 Soviet paratroopers were readied and were going to be dropped into Golan Heights they reckoned they could do it in a few hours, the rest if history, Israel stopped at Golan Heights and Soviet division was asked to stand down

Russia has a long historical relationship with Assad family going back many decades, they never supported anyone not even the Serbs like they do the Assad family, they will watch Syria get bombed but they will not allow Assad to be toppled, that’s why Obama keeps saying “surgical strikes” tailored to chemical use and not regime change

The two Dutch secret services AIVD and MIVD have briefed members of parliament about what they heard from US services and what is their own judgement. According to the MP's it is that the US has not proven their case.

delft said:

The two Dutch secret services AIVD and MIVD have briefed members of parliament about what they heard from US services and what is their own judgement. According to the MP's it is that the US has not proven their case.

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Exactly.. he..Pres. Obama, has not publicly disclosed any real proof about the Syrian govt attacking it's own people with chemical weapons.

At this point until anything else can be proven I believe the rebels attempted or deliberately performed the attack and something went wrong or things went as the rebels planned.

I need proof that the Syrian government attacked it own people. Before passing final judgement.

...can you say quagmire?

A little different news from the eastern MED..

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From Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet Public Affairs

HAIFA, Israel (NNS) -- Sailors and Marines aboard the amphibious transport dock ship USS San Antonio (LPD 17) arrived in Haifa, Israel for a routine port visit, Sept. 4.

San Antonio's commanding officer, Capt. Randell Dykes, said this visit is a well-deserved break for Sailors and Marines, and for many is the first time they have visited Israel.

"If you've been here, you know what a great country Israel is," said Dykes. "I know our Sailors and Marines will have a great time. They certainly deserve it after all the hard work they've put in on this deployment."

While in Haifa, Sailors and Marines will have the opportunity to explore the city and to experience the rich history and culture of Israel. Tours are being offered to the Sailors and Marines to historic locations while in port.

San Antonio is part of the Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group and, with the embarked 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, is deployed in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of responsibility.

For more information, visit

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For more news from Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet, visit

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bd popeye said:

Exactly.. he..Pres. Obama, has not publicly disclosed any real proof about the Syrian govt attacking it's own people with chemical weapons.

At this point until anything else can be proven I believe the rebels attempted or deliberately performed the attack and something went wrong or things went as the rebels planned.

I need proof that the Syrian government attacked it own people. Before passing final judgement.

...can you say quagmire?

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I haven't heard anything conclusive either.. the two 'facts' I've heard is the intercepted radio chatter and that the places the alleged sarin gas were used were in rebel controlled territories. While those themselves are good indicators they are far from irrefutable proof.

I mean common!! we need a LOT more just to put some guy on death row .. that's why they call it beyond reasonable doubt and now you want to launch hundreds of cruise missiles based on much lesser evidences? not to mention the risk of escalation is big in this case with Russia on Assad's back and the rebels themselves being affiliated with Al Queda.

It's one thing if we are going in to stop a bunch of 'Hilters' from murdering a bunch of 'Gandhis' but this is very far from that.

Thing is we know Assad is a nut case but would he really be so dumb to use chemical weapons just 15 minutes away from the Four Seasons Hotel in Damascus where the UN officials were staying??

Also recently we have heard that Christian clerics in churches have been targeted, well under Assad and his father Hafeez in the last 50 years no ethnic group was ever targeted due to thier religion, all ethnic groups lived side by side in peace and security

I visited Damascus in 2004 and no one gives a hoots what your belief was, mosques, churches and synagogues were in the same street

It's funny how nothing like this ever happened before but all of a sudden now then all this is being pinned on Assad!?

UN will report wether or not chemical weapons were used but it will not say who used them so whats the point in the report?

Assad was not perfect but he was minding his own business and wasn't causing any issues in the region, what will replace him will make people miss him because the alternative is so much worse

Saudi Arabia and Qatar leaders should be held accountable for this, they are the ones who have stirred up the trouble