Thursday, June 8, 2017

Will Iran's Hassan Rouhani negotiate on Syria?


http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2017/06/will_irans_hassan_rouhani_negotiate_on_syria.html
After establishing the Iran nuclear deal as his first-term legacy, the question now is, what new initiative will Iranian president Hassan Rouhani embark on in his second term?  Should there be any expectation from the international community in Rouhani's second term as this regime's president?  And if Rouhani has the will to bring about any change in, for example, Syria, a big if, will it be for the better good of the Syrian people and the region?  Or merely seeking Iran's interests?
Iran's policies in the region have been considered by many to be based on double standards.  How does Iran legitimize its interference in Syria, in Iraq, in Yemen, and across the region while millions have been killed, injured, and displaced as the entire region remains in turmoil?
Iran claims to seek peace, stability, and cooperation in the Middle East through negotiations with neighboring countries.  Yet the status quo has changed significantly for Rouhani's second term.  Donald Trump is now the U.S. president, bringing an end to Obama's appeasement policy and calling on all countries to isolate Iran.
Many of Iran's regional neighbors view the regime as an ally of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad, who has massacred tens of thousands of his own people.
Iran, however, continues its support for Assad, arguing that international law considers Assad the president of a legal government in Syria.  Does being a legal government legitimize such measures against its own constituents?
Tehran is validating its support for the Syrian regime based on a request placed by Assad and claiming that 60% of the country's lands are in the hands of ISIS and al-Qaeda.  And the mullahs' regime refuses to accept the existence of a Syrian opposition that enjoys international legitimacy and support.
While the international community accepts the fact that ISIS and other terrorists must be destroyed in Syria, this does not provide the grounds for Assad, with Iran's support, to massacre innocent civilians.  Former United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon accused Assad of committing war crimes and using starvation as a tool in this regard.

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