By Barbara Slavin It’s called the Manbij pocket and it’s a major impediment to the U.S. goal of defeating the Islamic State (IS) in Syria. The enclave in northern Syria, which borders Turkey for 60 miles, has remained open to IS infiltration. It is a lifeline for the IS “capital” of Raqqa that the Barack […]
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Syria Truce Holds, So Far
Posted March 10th, 2016 at 3:46 pm (UTC-4)
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Saturday marks two weeks since a ceasefire began in Syria. While the Assad regime, the Russians and opposition groups have all reported violations, combat has been greatly reduced and humanitarian aid has been moving to more areas. Anti-government protests have even taken place amid the truce. A new round of U.N.-mediated peace talks are set […]
Russia, Kurdish Aspirations and Brutal Enemy Call for Deft US Moves in Syria
Posted October 23rd, 2015 at 12:09 pm (UTC-4)
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Secretary of State John Kerry is meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Syria, a messy situation that has helped fuel the growth of the Isamic State – and appears to be creating a proxy war between the U.S. and Russia. The Obama administration is implementing its new “Syria First” policy, which relies on arming certain Kurdish factions to take the fight to the Islamic State coupled with U.S. air support. Add Russian President Vladimir Putin’s entry into the fray and his open support of Syria President Bashir al-Assad – who U.S. officials hold responsible for most of the misery – and the cocktail has become a lot more combustible. To make even modest progress, Syria requires the United States to avoid any number of policy and military landmines.