Here’s the Syrian conflict in a nutshell:
For years, Syria has been a Soviet/Russian client state. The Assad family has had close ties with Russia. The Russians supply most of Europe’s natural gas through several pipelines.
The Saudis haven’t really marketed their natural gas, but now would like to. Their natural market is Europe, and the best way to move gas is by pipeline. In order to run a pipeline to Europe, the Saudis have to run it through Syria. The Russians don’t want that pipeline run because they want to keep their monopoly on natural gas supplies to Europe.
The Saudis know Assad will not assent to the pipeline across Syrian territory to please Russia, so to get the pipeline for the Saudis, Assad has to go. So the Saudis, with our knowledge and support, gin up the “uprising” against Assad to topple his regime. Part of the uprising is the creation of ISIS, which like most of Frankenstein’s monsters, gets a life of its own and goes out of control. The Russians prop up Assad in the uprising to block the Saudi pipeline. The Saudis double down by having us come in to do their fighting for them.
Our opposition to ISIS is only token; we are really being prodded by the Saudis to act against Assad. The Russians are putting their people there to checkmate our move. So we’re just being played for suckers in a money deal between the Russians and Saudis. And that’s the Syria deal.
BINGO! You win post of the day!
Ahah!
That makes a lot of sense!
So Obama has secretly supported ISIS to take down ASSAD so the Saudis could open a natural gas pipeline to Europe.
Very insightful post!
Good summary. The only thing I would alter is the suggestion that ISIS went out of control.
They’ve never been out of control. They are and have always done exactly what the State Department wants them to do.
Good summary. But don’t forget Qatar, which is very much in the equation. Qatar is a major player in all this.
Although there has been rivalries between Saudi and Qatari ruling classes, the two have much in common. Examples include: same Islamic ideology of Wahabism and Salafism, funding of jihadists, instigating to topple regimes in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, and lately Syria.
It is primarily the Qatari oil and natural gas pipeline (North Field) which they want to take to Europe through Syria.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-secret-stupid-saudi-us-deal-on-syria/5410130
Needless to say Qatar’s Thani royal family funds Al-Jazeera network, and Qatar either outright owns commercial buildings such as Harrods in the UK, or has stakes in buildings such the Empire State. All this together with a history of close relations with the U.S. and also very much the UK makes them economically and politically very influential.