The Russian President wrote an opinion piece in the New York Times last year in which he pleads with the American people and their political leaders to stay out of the Syrian conflict.
Republican Senator John McCain tweeted "Putin's NYT op-ed is an insult to the intelligence of every American."
What do you think?
MOSCOW — Recent events surrounding Syria have prompted me to speak directly to the American people and their political leaders. It is important to do so at a time of insufficient communication between our societies.
Relations between
us have passed through different stages. We stood against each other during the
cold war. But we were also allies once, and defeated the Nazis together. The
universal international organization — the United Nations — was then established
to prevent such devastation from ever happening again.
The United Nations’ founders
understood that decisions affecting war and peace should happen only by
consensus, and with America’s consent the veto by Security Council permanent
members was enshrined in the United Nations Charter. The profound wisdom of
this has underpinned the stability of international relations for decades.
No one wants the United
Nations to suffer the fate of the League of Nations, which collapsed because it
lacked real leverage. This is possible if influential countries bypass the
United Nations and take military action without Security Council authorization.
The potential strike by the
United States against Syria, despite strong opposition from many countries and
major political and religious leaders, including the pope, will result in more
innocent victims and escalation, potentially spreading the conflict far beyond
Syria’s borders. A strike would increase violence and unleash a new wave of
terrorism. It could undermine multilateral efforts to resolve the Iranian
nuclear problem and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and further destabilize
the Middle East and North Africa. It could throw the entire system of
international law and order out of balance.
Syria is not witnessing a battle
for democracy, but an armed conflict between government and opposition in a
multireligious country. There are few champions of democracy in Syria.
But there are more than enough Qaeda fighters and extremists of all stripes
battling the government. The United States State Department has designated Al
Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, fighting with the
opposition, as terrorist organizations. This internal conflict, fueled by
foreign weapons supplied to the opposition, is one of the bloodiest in the
world.
Mercenaries from Arab
countries fighting there, and hundreds of militants from Western countries and
even Russia, are an issue of our deep concern. Might they not return to our
countries with experience acquired in Syria? After all, after fighting in
Libya, extremists moved on to Mali. This threatens us all.
From the outset, Russia has advocated peaceful dialogue
enabling Syrians to develop a compromise plan for their own future. We are not
protecting the Syrian government, but international law. We need to use the
United Nations Security Council and believe that preserving law and order in
today’s complex and turbulent world is one of the few ways to keep
international relations from sliding into chaos. The law is still the law, and
we must follow it whether we like it or not. Under current international law,
force is permitted only in self-defense or by the decision of the Security
Council. Anything else is unacceptable under the United Nations Charter and
would constitute an act of aggression.
No one doubts that poison gas
was used in Syria. But there is every reason to believe it was used not by the
Syrian Army, but by opposition forces, to provoke intervention by their
powerful foreign patrons, who would be siding with the fundamentalists. Reports
that militants are preparing another attack — this time against Israel — cannot
be ignored.
It is alarming that military
intervention in internal conflicts in foreign countries has become commonplace
for the United States. Is it in America’s long-term interest? I doubt it.
Millions around the world increasingly see America not as a model of democracy but
as relying solely on brute force, cobbling coalitions together under the slogan
“you’re either with us or against us.”
But force has proved
ineffective and pointless. Afghanistan is reeling, and no one can say what will
happen after international forces withdraw. Libya is divided into tribes and
clans. In Iraq the civil war continues, with dozens killed each day. In the
United States, many draw an analogy between Iraq and Syria, and ask why their
government would want to repeat recent mistakes.
No matter how targeted the
strikes or how sophisticated the weapons, civilian casualties are inevitable,
including the elderly and children, whom the strikes are meant to protect.
The world reacts by asking: if
you cannot count on international law, then you must find other ways to ensure
your security. Thus a growing number of countries seek to acquire weapons of
mass destruction. This is logical: if you have the bomb, no one will touch you.
We are left with talk of the need to strengthen nonproliferation, when in
reality this is being eroded.
We must stop using the
language of force and return to the path of civilized diplomatic and political
settlement.
A new opportunity to avoid
military action has emerged in the past few days. The United States, Russia and
all members of the international community must take advantage of the Syrian
government’s willingness to place its chemical arsenal under international
control for subsequent destruction. Judging by the statements of President
Obama, the United States sees this as an alternative to military
action.
I welcome the president’s
interest in continuing the dialogue with Russia on Syria. We must work together
to keep this hope alive, as we agreed to at the Group of 8 meeting in Lough
Erne in Northern Ireland in June, and steer the discussion back toward
negotiations.
If we can avoid force against
Syria, this will improve the atmosphere in international affairs and strengthen
mutual trust. It will be our shared success and open the door to cooperation on
other critical issues.
My working and personal
relationship with President Obama is marked by growing trust. I appreciate
this. I carefully studied his address to the nation on Tuesday. And I would
rather disagree with a case he made on American exceptionalism, stating that
the United States’ policy is “what makes America different. It’s what makes us
exceptional.” It is extremely dangerous to encourage people to see themselves
as exceptional, whatever the motivation. There are big countries and small
countries, rich and poor, those with long democratic traditions and those still
finding their way to democracy. Their policies differ, too. We are all
different, but when we ask for the Lord’s blessings, we must not forget that
God created us equal.
Vladimir V. Putin
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