Dr. Nashabe: US Realizes Regime Change in Syria Fails

In an exclusive interview with FNA, Dr. Nashabe also mentioned the role of Turkey in the move by Washington, saying, “The US learned that continuing to arm Kurdish rebels will lead to mounting tension with Turkey, which is a NATO member.”

Dr. Omar Nashabe is Lecturer in the Lebanese-American University in Lebanon. He is also an editorial member and reviewer of several international reputed journals, including al-Akhbar Newspaper.

Below is the full text of the interview:

Q: Donald Trump, US President, ordered the US withdrawal from Syria. On what military ground has he issued this order?

A: The US military withdrawal from Syria is in line with President Trump’s overall foreign policy. The US President has realized that the US agenda (i.e. regime change in Syria, weakening Hezbollah and playing and active role in ground of one of Iran’s and Russia’s close allies) was never going to be successfully done. But, the role of Turkey cannot be overlooked; the US learned that continuing to arm Kurdish rebels will lead to mounting tension with Turkey, which is a member of NATO. Therefore, the US military withdrawal from Syria can also serve as a message from Washington to Ankara: abandoning the Kurds may be an invitation for repairing what went wrong with the relations of Turkey and the US, and/or an attempt to persuade Turkey to stop its increasing rapprochement with Russia.

Q: Trump justified his move saying the US military presence in Syria had achieved its aim with the defeat of Daesh (ISIL or ISIS). Can the terrorist group be considered “defeated” by the US?

A: The Daesh terrorist group has been defeated; but not by the US. The terrorist group was rather defeated by a large coalition including Russia, the Syrian Army, Hezbollah, Iranian forces, and last but not least, the Syrian people themselves. It was only after Daesh attacked targets in Western Syria when Turkey and the US started advertising that they were fighting against the terrorist group. Even then, their armies were inconsistent in fighting Daesh. In numerous occasion, the US army refrained from attacking Daesh groups, because Washington had hoped that these groups may cause severe damage to the pro-government forces.
In short, US military withdrawal from Syria has nothing to do with defeating Daesh. In fact, Daesh still has military presence in some parts in Syria, namely in Deir Ezzur, where some American soldiers were stationed.

Q: The Kurdish majority Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) was supported and armed by the US, but Kurdish Spokeswoman Ilham Ahmad has described the US decision to withdraw from Syria as a stab in the back of the Kurds. What future do you anticipate for the Kurds without the US?

A: The Kurds will have no way but to reintegrate in the Syrian army. They should reach an agreement with the Syrian government for a certain autonomous provincial ruling system under the authority of Damascus. Kurds already know that if they fail to reach the agreement with Syria’s legitimate government, then the Turkish army will not hesitate to slaughter them. Then, the Syrian army may not be ready to go to war against Turkey to defend the Kurds, especially with their history of worked hard for regime change in Syria, being a puppet of outside forces such as the US.

Now that the US has abandoned the Kurds, somebody has to take over and control the situation. The development in the Syrian city of Manbij is an evidence: Syria’s troops entering Manbij would spell restoration of the government control over the Syrian-Turkish border. Syrian government is to exercise sovereignty over its own territory, and this is what it is doing right now entering Manbij, by the call of whether civilians or Kurdish forces.

Q: Trump says Saudi Arabia, not the US, will pay to rebuild Syria, while Bashar al-Assad, Syrian President, says the country does not need the help of the West or Saudi Arabia. What does that tell us about the real aim of the war on Syria?

A: The top in the US’s agenda was to topple the Syrian president and to place a puppet regime instead of the current legitimate government of the country; However, Trump realized that the plan for regime change in Syria was defeated. Therefore, he may be planning to lure Syria using Saudi Arabia’s money and the return of Syria to the Arab League. The plan seems underway: the Persian Gulf Arab states, including the UAE, are reopening their embassies in the capital Damascus, showing tendency to re-establish Syria as a member of the Arab League. Meanwhile, Pro-Saudi Sudan President Omar Al-Bashir recently visited Damascus and passed a Saudi message to President Bashar al-Assad, claiming that if he abandons his close ties with the Iran and Hezbollah, he shall be rewarded with substantial funds and reconstruction plans.

Source:FarsNews