Middle East Policy

  The Chinese president's message to his Russian counterpart has been made abundantly clear and self-evident to the extent that it needs no explanatory comments. Simply put, it is a proclamation of China's new international role and objective, which marks a new era in terms of the international order and politics.  - I have no doubt about the disfunctioning of the current US-led western international order due to its intrinsic flaws, unleashed capitalism's problems, and the world's changing balance of power. - Thus, a change in the post-cold war international order and politics is very prospective in the direction of more role and influence for the rising China and its forming international camp, as the victorious western powers couldn't maintain their political and economic paramount strengths, which limit their rivals respective strengths.  - In my opinion, the main problem of the current western-led international order is that it is actually based on and structu...

  Less than 3 months before this major development, I wrote this  commentary , which was faced with underestimation by many western fellow scholars. They wouldn't believe it considering the announced strategic partnership between China and Saudi Arabia as just tactical maneuver by Saudi Arabia the well-established US backyard ally for timely purposes and gains. This position was widely adopted by the US political and governmental circles as well. I can understand this western stance as a typical behavior because the leading powers along with their mentalities are usually reluctant to recognize and acknowledge ‘change’ that affects their supremacy in general. This  Chinese-backed agreement  constitutes a double blow to the US stand and interests in the Middle East in political terms for the following reasons. Firstly, China has shown and proved in the most practical and factual way that it has interests wide beyond the previously-established renown and accepted econom...

  Comparing aid offered by Deirezzor tribes and UN after Syria earthquake, calling on the UN to elect his grandfather instead of Mr. Guterres. A very informative material about the failure and impunity of the UN in the aftermath of the Syria earthquake, which led me to a substantial question about the dire negligence of the essential human rights by the UN vis-a-vis politically-biased norms and rules. This is a major blow to the rights-based approach of human rights achieved after long struggle.  https://syriaaccountability.org/too-little-too-late-for-northwest-syria-lethal-un-negligence-and-the-imperative-of-an-accountability-process/

  I can understand this position by Amb. Ford supporting US withdrawal from Syria as an outcry after years of disappointment with US Syria policy, which I share with him.  Can the US no-policy serve as a policy? NO, it is counterproductive and will eventually backfire on US interests and Syria's situation--many scholars and I have been crying out.  

 In solidarity and companionship with our sisters and brothers who have been let and abandoned under rubble in northen and north western Syria, and to remind the heinous world we are living in that we, the Syrians, who have been abandoned under rubble for about a 12 years, are not dead yet and still have voices to scream and claim, I am launching an initiative calling on my fellow Syrians to sign all their letters and statements with the phrase "Syria, Under Rubble" before their names. In this initiative, we are seeking neither acknowledgment nor assistance, but rather we are condemning the world powers' policies, and standing up for our dignity and freedom as have previously done and will always do.  Syria, Under Rubble,  Nassim Yaziji 

  As the dust clears from the scene of not just the one month earthquake, but most importantly of our 12-year persistent earthquake in Syria, the political earthquake should start soon by the always-abandoned Syrian people.  Our desolation should serve as the seismic power for our prospective earthquake, which should shake the heinous world we are living in to attain our salvation. Our sisters and brothers who have been let under rubble for 5 days in Idlib and the countryside of Aleppo in the aftermath of February 6 earthquake while the world is watching the #White_Helmets digging the rubble almost with their bare hands to save a life, has opened the great wound of being, as a Syrian people, under rubble for about a 12 years.  What happened in these 5 days only proves and affirms what happened and found out through that 12 years that we are a people with no friends including Turkey and its mercenaries in the illegitimate political and executive institutions and the so-cal...

  Israel army chief has made a statement about his country's achievements in preventing "Hizbollah 2" project in Syria. Apart from the motives behind this misleading or self-deluded statement, there are key facts should be stated and clarified concerning Iran, Israel and Syria's war and crisis.  - Iran is the most powerful actor in the regime-held part of Syria in terms of military and economic resources and associated parties. Territories deemed vital for Iran in there are under direct and explicit control of Iran, especially the region that extends from Qalamoon to Deir ezzor.   - Iran invested in a complex infrastructure in Syria consisting of military forces, paramilitary militias, economic networks, military and security personnel, and religious and social institutions. - Iran is working to strengthen its on-ground presence in SDF-held region and even in factions and Turkish-controlled areas. - Iran has a real presence and influence in the southern Syria neighb...

This may be the beginning of the end for the West's supremacy in the Middle East, especially for the United States. It is actually the harvest season for what the US policies has planted in the region, in particular the #Obama administrations' policies. We can't understand the current developments in the Middle East without getting back to Obama's policies there. Obama was the ultimate sponsor of the region's terror organizations, especially #ISIS and #al-Qaeda, which controlled northern Iraq and the most of Syria during his terms, and in the same time he was also the ultimate supporter of the Iranian regime, which controlled four Arab countries and Gaza strip as they publicly claim. #Biden administration is staying the course of course. Now we know that this is a natural policies of the US #Democrats and expect these results from Democratic administrations by default. In general, they betray their values and norms, particularly the liberal democracy and human right...

In the current vulnerable electoral system and its application, it is getting much harder for the #GOP to win national elections. Unless it is amended towards strict voter and ballot verification as exactly as other well-established democracies, they will keep losing key swing states.  Otherwise, they need to work on demographics and mail-in ballots in swing states. Get their voters registered there and manage to get more ballots counted via bureaucracy. Simply learn from Dems in the internationally well-known counties. PS: baseless database accusations! :D

After so many years, and with much excitement, the Middle East Policy is back. I will resume posting to the renovated weblog by the end of year. It is definitely a new Middle East with much of chaos, violence and authoritarian abuse. My advocated values-based Neo-Internationalism has been overrun by standard pragmatic and opportunistic national interests by the Western states, especially after their Libya and Syria policies, which resulted in the death of the 'Responsibility to Protect' (R2P) once promising international norm, and in more chaotic international order and security.