Russia brings the fight to ISIS in Syria!!!

#953
#953
Oooo, rehearding. Sounds like something a member of ISIS would do in the sheep stable while his buddies were cheering him on.

You can keep those thoughts to yourself.
 
#954
#954
volprof said:
Oooo, rehearding. Sounds like something a member of ISIS would do in the sheep stable while his buddies were cheering him on.

You can keep those thoughts to yourself.
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Not your best retort...

How many times did Obama say there would not be US boots on the ground in syria? Just a few...

https://youtu.be/XP0SV0uzi7U

But, "unnamed" US officials "confirmed" that now it's okay to do just that...
 
#955
#955
Pacer92 said:
Not your best retort...

How many times did Obama say there would not be US boots on the ground in syria? Just a few...

https://youtu.be/XP0SV0uzi7U

But, "unnamed" US officials "confirmed" that now it's okay to do just that...
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Other than securing the Syrian-Iraq border, I don't think we should. I think it's a mistake. We should worry about securing Iraq, provided the Iraqi government is willing to work with us. Russia has said it will handle ISIS in Syria, so let it handle ISIS in Syria. Would pretty much put an end to Russian chutzpah in a hurry once reality finally sets in for Putin (assuming it hasn't already) and would isolate ISIS to Syria in the Levant area (Yemen, Afghanistan, Egypt, and Libya and the Mahgreb are all separate matters).
 
#956
#956
volprof said:
Other than securing the Syrian-Iraq border, I don't think we should. I think it's a mistake. We should worry about securing Iraq, provided the Iraqi government is willing to work with us. Russia has said it will handle ISIS in Syria, so let it handle ISIS in Syria. Would pretty much put an end to Russian chutzpah in a hurry once reality finally sets in for Putin (assuming it hasn't already) and would isolate ISIS to Syria in the Levant area (Yemen, Afghanistan, Egypt, and Libya and the Mahgreb are all separate matters).
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We should've been securing borders from the beginning. The Iraq/syria border is little concern when the countries that fund, train and harbor these savages remain open.

Turkey, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar are the borders that need to be policed.
 
#957
#957
Pacer92 said:
We should've been securing borders from the beginning. The Iraq/syria border is little concern when the countries that fund, train and harbor these savages remain open.

Turkey, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar are the borders that need to be policed.
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Its like trying to carry on a conversation with a brick wall... only brick walls don't talk back.

We shouldn't even be over there in the first place, muchless arming "moderate militants" or militants of any kind.
 
#958
#958
Pacer92 said:
We should've been securing borders from the beginning. The Iraq/syria border is little concern when the countries that fund, train and harbor these savages remain open.

Turkey, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar are the borders that need to be policed.
Click to expand...

Its like trying to carry on a conversation with a brick wall... only brick walls don't talk back.

We shouldn't even be over there in the first place, much less arming "moderate militants" or militants of any kind.
 
#959
#959
Pacer92 said:
You fail to see because you only invest into the spoon fed, soothing agenda voice...

Get out the box...
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pretty sure prof has direct quoted and linked from the Russian MoD. seems like that would be as far from "our MSM" as one could get for information.
 
#960
#960
Pacer92 said:
We should've been securing borders from the beginning. The Iraq/syria border is little concern when the countries that fund, train and harbor these savages remain open.

Turkey, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar are the borders that need to be policed.
Click to expand...

Tracking cash flows that aid ISIS and other jihadists is certainly a good idea. Threatening Turkey with NATO expulsion if it fails to crackdown on the border (with an aid package offering) is another idea to consider.

Rasputin_Vol said:
Its like trying to carry on a conversation with a brick wall... only brick walls don't talk back.

We shouldn't even be over there in the first place, muchless arming "moderate militants" or militants of any kind.
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When you finally locate this utopia you've been searching for, be sure to let us all know.

Meanwhile, my suggestions are focusing on how to solve the problems with the materials we've been given. If I could go back and prevent Iraq 2003 or even the arming of the Syrian opposition in 2011-12, I would, but none of that matters now. So you have to solve the problem with the hand previous idiots dealt you.
 
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#961
#961
Putin: Any targets threatening Russian forces in Syria must be immediately destroyed


“Any targets threatening our [military] group or land infrastructure must be immediately destroyed,” Putin said, speaking at a Defense Ministry event.

Putin said more 5,000 members of the Free Syrian Army are operating on the terrorists’ side.
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“The Islamic State area of influence is expanding,” he said, “There is a threat that their actions will be transferred to Central Asia and the Caucasus.”
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Both Putin and Shoigu took part in the Defense Ministry board meeting, which apart from the Syrian operation touched upon such issues as nuclear strategy, NATO expansion and Arctic military bases.

“Special attention should be paid to strengthening the combat potential of the strategic nuclear forces and implementing defense space programs,” Putin said during the meeting.

Russia needs to “arm all the components of the nuclear triad with new armaments, raise the efficiency of the missile attack warning and aerospace defense systems,” the Russian president said.
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#962
#962
Although I don't agree with everything he ever has to say (or even here, for that matter), Friedman often delivers a refreshingly pragmatic take on events. (He's a lot like Zakaria in that sense.) Nearing three months out from the initiation of the Russian air campaign, and, I have to say, he's looking more and more right with each passing day, the Syrian crisis no closer to resolution today than it was then.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/30/opinion/thomas-friedman-syria-obama-and-putin.html?_r=0

I'm not sure how I missed his article at the time.
 
#965
#965
Since conspiracy theories currently serve as a dominant theme on the board during these uncertain times of ours, where we need easy narratives to help give some semblance of "order" to the complexities of reality that are otherwise too difficult to cope with, I thought this was a unique one on the Syrian conflict. It makes my head spin just trying to get down the basics of it, let alone comprehending the odds.

Seymour Hersh's bizarre new conspiracy theory about the US and Syria, explained - Vox

Which group will out-conspiracy theorists the other conspiracy theorists?
 
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#966
#966
Not specifically Syria-related, but close enough.

This morning, while driving around performing last moment Christmas prep, I had the radio tuned to BBC News, which said that Russia was essentially pairing with the Taliban in Afghanistan because it sees shared interests in "fighting ISIS." Luckily, I thought the anchor had worded things incorrectly, because, had I realized she had not, I probably would have ran my vehicle off the road or into oncoming traffic out of complete disorientation.

Nope, she did not stutter. I've asked elsewhere why a rational actor like Russia took nearly five years to act in Syria. I'll ask why a rational actor like Russia would let this information out, just like it obviously "unwittingly" (wink wink) did with the whole cobalt nuclear bomb thing in Sochi a couple months back. They could have just kept hiding coordination with the Taliban; they obviously want us to know. Why?

This is either a part of the most short-sighted foreign policy initiative (which includes Russia's actions in Syria), of any major nation, we've seen since the Bush admin's decision to go into Iraq in '03, or this is a part of some bigger Russian ploy. To do what, I'm not sure.

There's no way they could be this stupid though. It's like they've learned absolutely nothing from miserable US failures over the past three decades in that part of the world. I refuse to believe Russian leadership is this dumb.

On a related note, one rightfully wonders if this coordination between Russian intelligence services and the Taliban is the primary reason why we've witnessed a recent resurgence of the group in the southern part of Afghanistan.

And on another related note, may the Russian govt. and its ilk never criticize the American govt. for cooperating with terrorists ever again. That should help simplify our dialogue quite a bit now.

Russia sees interests 'coincide' with Taliban on fighting IS - Yahoo News
 
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#967
#967
So, it's going to get really interesting if/when reasonable suspicion of Russian intelligence sharing with the Taliban plays a part in American troop deaths.

Bagram, Afghanistan, attack: 6 U.S. troops killed - CNN.com

We have Russia currently aligned with a terrorist group that kills civilians and American and Afghan troops. I can't believe how little play this is getting in the media. I guess we're currently too swamped by Trump Mania.

On a surface level, it appears that Russia is doing this with the kind of realist (Russia is the Realist of all realists; even the USSR was as well) mentality they've always taken to foreign relations. They're frightened about the foothold ISIS is gaining in Central Asia, and, since the Taliban always confined itself to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Russia thinks better to have a strong Taliban than a strong ISIS. That thinking, while fairly cynical, is understandable.

What I do not understand, however, is why you would willfully risk further complicating relations with the US in another conflict theater and why you would want to challenge relations with the Afghan government like this. If you want the US out of Central Asia eventually, this is the exact opposite policy of what you should be doing. It will come closer to guaranteeing a permanent US presence in that part of the world, simply because Afghanistan (and possibly some other Central Asian countries) will be fearful of a neighborhood without a US presence. I imagine China, another country in the neighborhood who was looking forward to American withdrawal, can't be overly pleased with this recent Russian move.

Again, I think this is another example of Putin's tactical brilliance but strategic impatience. This is a move that only makes sense in the short-term and can only work long-term provided the most optimal circumstances, circumstances not likely to materialize.
 
#968
#968
CNN reported today that the Taliban denies Russian claims that the two are cooperating in Afghanistan.

This just gets weirder and weirder. I can't make heads or tails.
 
#969
#969
I'll be waiting patiently for several events to happen in 2016...

1. An ISIS attack on Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia or Qatar (instead of the US, France or some other NATO country)
2. The US or NATO forces to attack an ISIS oil convoy going into Turkey
3. A leprechaun riding into the Land of Oz on a unicorn

I wonder which one is most likely to happen?
 
#970
#970
Rasputin_Vol said:
I'll be waiting patiently for several events to happen in 2016...

1. An ISIS attack on Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia or Qatar (instead of the US, France or some other NATO country)
2. The US or NATO forces to attack an ISIS oil convoy going into Turkey
3. A leprechaun riding into the Land of Oz on a unicorn

I wonder which one is most likely to happen?
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You mean another attack?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Suruç_bombing

Saudi mosque blast: 13 dead; ISIS claims responsibility - CNN.com

Like more attacks like this in 2016?
 
#971
#971
Grand Vol said:
You mean another attack?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Suruç_bombing

Saudi mosque blast: 13 dead; ISIS claims responsibility - CNN.com

Like more attacks like this in 2016?
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Don't you find this rather interesting (in your own link you posted)...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Suruç_bombing

The district of Suruç is located on the Syrian-Turkish border in the Province of Şanlıurfa, approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) from the Syrian town of Kobanî. The populations of both Suruç and Kobanî are mostly Kurds, with the cultural ties between the two having resulted in deadly riots in south-eastern Turkey in October 2014 when Kobanî was under siege by Islamic State militants. The riots had mainly protested the Turkish government's lack of intervention in Kobanî against ISIL.[21] Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan claimed he was not prepared to launch operations against ISIL unless it was also against the forces of Bashar Al Assad.[22] Furthermore, allegations of covert funding and the arming of ISIL by the Turkish government, which came under particular scrutiny following the 2014 MİT lorries scandal, also caused heavy controversy.[23][24][25]
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So obviously, this was an attack directed squarely at the Kurds, not the govt of Turkey... had it been aimed at the Turkish govt, there would have been zero hesitation to go after them. Instead, Erdogan offered up this nonsense about not fighting a group of DOMESTIC TERRORISTS unless the attack was also coordinated with some sort of assault on Assad. If anything, this attack further exposes ISIS as a tool of Turkey to fight Assad AND the Kurds.

Come back to me when ISIS actually attacks something of significance that is aimed squarely at the govts of Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. They ain't gonna bite the hands that feed them.
 
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#972
#972
Grand Vol said:
You mean another attack?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Suruç_bombing

Saudi mosque blast: 13 dead; ISIS claims responsibility - CNN.com

Like more attacks like this in 2016?
Click to expand...

As for your alleged Saudi attacks, you know as well as I do that The House of Saud are Sunni/Wahhabists... so this attack was in no way a threat to them.

This is the third Saudi Arabia mosque attack claimed by ISIS since May.

On May 22, a suicide bomber detonated himself, killing 21 people, at the Imam Ali mosque in the Persian Gulf-area village of Qudayh, in one of Saudi Arabia's few Shiite population centers in the majority Sunni kingdom.

A week later, a man disguised as a woman blew himself up -- killing three people -- outside a mosque in a predominantly Shiite neighborhood of Damman, the capital of Saudi Arabia's oil-rich Eastern Province.

In July, Saudi Arabia's government said it had arrested 431 people with alleged ISIS ties, some of whom the kingdom said were involved in the May bombings.

The Asir region, where Thursday's attack happened, includes a small portion of the kingdom's border with Yemen. Saudi Arabia has launched numerous airstrikes in Yemen this year in support of that country's deposed president, targeting Houthi rebels who took over Yemen's capital.
Click to expand...

Houthis = Shiites
 
#973
#973
Rasputin_Vol said:
Come back to me when ISIS actually attacks something of significance that is aimed squarely at the govts of Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. They ain't gonna bite the hands that feed them.
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I see. So you'd rather them bomb more innocents that are Sunni in nature just to prove your point. More needlessly have to die just so Ras can point to it and say "told ya so!"

It's obvious you stated something wrong, I called you on it and now you want to move the goal posts on the concept. It's very unbecoming of your stance on the matter.
 
#974
#974
Grand Vol said:
I see. So you'd rather them bomb more innocents that are Sunni in nature just to prove your point. More needlessly have to die just so Ras can point to it and say "told ya so!"
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They won't do a damn thing to any Sunnis or any govt that funds them... relax.

Grand Vol said:
It's obvious you stated something wrong, I called you on it and now you want to move the goal posts on the concept. It's very unbecoming of your stance on the matter.
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I made a general statement and you forced me to have to clarify. In doing so, you highlighted even more the hypocrisy of these ISIS attacks by showing that not only do they go after Shiites amd Kurds, but in the case of Turkey, they will even turn a blind eye to terror attacks in their own country as long as it is directed at Kurds.

They are not going to bite the hand that feeds them.
 
#975
#975
Rasputin_Vol said:
I'll be waiting patiently for several events to happen in 2016...

1. An ISIS attack on Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia or Qatar (instead of the US, France or some other NATO country)
2. The US or NATO forces to attack an ISIS oil convoy going into Turkey
3. A leprechaun riding into the Land of Oz on a unicorn

I wonder which one is most likely to happen?
Click to expand...

The catalyst for me posting this...

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, ISIS leader, threatens West, Israel in first statement in seven months - Washington Times

They won't do a damn thing... at worst probably send a bottle rocket into a mountainside in Israel or attack some more Shiites on The Arabian Peninsula. Or if you do see some staged attack, you'll know it from the onset when they attach an ISIS attack to Assad, like Turkey did.
 
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