The British House of Commons tonight voted against backing the government on military action against the Assad regime in Syria. This has put an end to British involvement in Syria for the time being. The resolution does ask for another vote after the results of the UN inspection are available. The inspectors are due to leave Syria on Saturday. They will, however, still require more time for analysis before their report is complete.
British Parliament Closes Door On Syria Intervention
After debating deep into the night, the
British House of Commons refused a precursory resolution on military
strikes in Syria. The resolution, which failed 272-285, called for a
second vote to authorize military action once the U.N. inspectors
have issued their findings on whether the Syrian regime of Bashar
Assad used chemical weapons against its own people.
"It is clear to me the British
Parliament, reflecting the views of the British people, does not want
to see British military action," Prime Minister David Cameron
said. "I get that and the government will act accordingly."
The motion came after Cameron made his
case in favor of strikes and many in Parliament cast doubt on his
assertions.
Reporting from London, NPR's Philip
Reeves reports that this came as a "surprise" and
represents a big blow to Cameron and his authority.
"It's a measure of the level of
opposition to the possibility of being drawn into a war without
knowing the consequences in the Middle East and a reflection of the
legacy of Iraq," Philip told our Newscast unit.
Also, what happens across the pond is
consequential for the United States because Britain is a key piece of
the international coalition President Obama was counting on if he
chose to launch a strike.
President Obama insists that he has not yet made a decision to launch missiles against Syria. And without British cooperation, the United States is rather isolated in its aggression toward Syria. Mr. Obama may decide to wait for the UN report in the face of questions about the credibility of the intelligence that is being used to justify military action by the United States.
Meanwhile, Russian warships continue steaming toward the Mediterranean. The Russians say that the additions to its forces in the Mediterranean are not related to the Syrian situation, however, their presence will complicate an already tense situation. The Russians seem intent on placing as much pressure on Obama as the can in order to get him to back down. They have blocked the U.S. action in the UN Security Council and are insisting that any action wait for the UN inspection report which could take several more days giving Syria much more time to prepare for an attack. This would make the attack result in a great deal of death and destruction while being militarily rather ineffective.
Russia to Send Ships to Mediterranean
Russia announced on Thursday plans to
increase its Navy presence in the Mediterranean as ships from the
U.S., Britain and France stood by to await orders in case of a
military strike on Syria.
Calls for military intervention
intensified in the aftermath of an alleged chemical attack in the
Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta on Aug. 21, which the U.S. and
Europe believe was carried out by the Syrian government and Russia
says was done by Syrian rebels in an attempt to lure the West into
war and derail peace talks planned for September.
As fears of an imminent strike on
Thursday prompted some Syrians to evacuate and Israelis to line up
for gas masks, French media reported that the country had sent a ship
to the Mediterranean to join the U.S. and British ships and
submarines that are already located on the territory of Turkey —
which announced Monday its intention to take part in the attack —
and Jordan.
It was in this context that an
unidentified source in the General Staff of the Armed Forces told
Interfax that escalation in Syria required Russian forces to increase
the Navy's presence in the region, while RIA Novosti cited an
unidentified high-ranking official who said the move was not related
to the Syria crisis and had been in the works for some time now.
Alexander Khramchikhin, a military
expert with the Institute for Political and Military Analysis, said
Russia's decision to increase its presence in the Mediterranean was
meant as a "psychological trick" to keep Western forces
from attacking Syria.
This trick is the most serious measure
Russia is ready to take, however, and the chance of a military
confrontation between Russian and Western forces is "exceedingly
unlikely," he said.
Since July 1, four combat teams of the
Russian Navy have been located in the eastern and western parts of
the Mediterranean Sea. A Naval Forces official told Interfax earlier
this week that the Russian Navy was prepared to protect Russian
interests in the region if Western forces attacked Syria, but it had
not received any orders for military action.
Meanwhile, Europe seems to have taken a
step back from plans for an immediate intervention, with Britain's
Labour Party insisting that the decision must be postponed until
results of the UN chemical weapons team — working at an alleged
site of the attack since Monday — are announced. France also said
it needed proof of a chemical attack to begin a military operation.
Failing to act will cause the U.S. to lose credibility with its allies in the region. This comes on the heels of a diplomatic failure when Russia refused the request of the United States to extradite Edward Snowden. Mr Obama has been talking tough on Syria since the civil war there began. Red lines have been crossed but the president has failed to act. This time, he has ships, planes and missiles off the Syrian coast. If he does not act now, the international community will no longer trust anything he says in the future. If he does act, he will blow up a lot of expensive military equipment causing death and destruction with only moderate military effect. The U.S. has already lost this battle.
