Two articles published on two consecutive days in The
National Interest, show that America
has an opportunity to redeem itself and display the kind of maturity that
democracies have lacked for at least half a century.
The first article came under the title: “Trump Deserves a
Chance to Deal with Russia
over Syria ,”
written by Nikolas K. Gvosdev, and published on March 15, 2017. The second
article came under the title: “Syria May Be a No-Win Situation for U.S.
Troops,” written by Daniel L. Davis, and published on March 16, 2017.
Nikolas Gvosdev brings up the fact that a suggestion was
advanced to the effect that America
should collaborate with Russia
to bring the tragic situation in Syria to an end. He discusses the
pros and cons of the suggestion as advanced by the various debaters, and
concludes that it would be a good idea to take up that project. The strongest
point he makes in favor of this decision is what happened a decade ago when the
Pentagon was opposed to the “surge” in Iraq but was overruled by the
President at the time. The surge was implemented he says, and the outcome was a
success according to him.
As to Daniel Davis, he expresses the fear that the Trump
Administration will not even consult with others on whether or not the United States should get involved in Syria . He says
this will probably happen despite the protestations, and will prove disastrous
for the United States .
The strongest point he makes to support this view is something that's out of
his personal experience.
He was in Afghanistan ,
he says, where he witnessed how bad decisions have led to American lives being
lost needlessly, and to soldiers getting wounded while serving no useful
purpose. He predicts that the same sad story will again play itself out in Syria , and he
urges the Administration to stay out of that war.
The two writers are professionals in their respective
fields, and there is nothing I can add or subtract from what they said. This is
why my contribution to this debate is done on another level altogether. In
fact, my reaction to what is happening at this time emanates from the reality
that for half a century, I have been interested in the differences that exist
between the various cultures.
The current debate questioning the role that the United
States should or should not play in Syria – be it with or apart from Russia –
reminds me of a time when those two powers battled each other as they vied to
win the hearts and minds of ordinary people around the world during the Cold
War.
The machinations surrounding the Cold War drew my attention
shortly after the 1967 sneak attack conducted by Israel
on Egypt 's
air force while the planes sat idle on the tarmacs and in the hangars. What
happened, to the best of my recollection, was that Egypt 's
President Nasser was interviewed by a journalist from Britain or from the United States a few months after
the occurrence. He was asked why he still maintained close relations with the Soviet Union after the setback that the country had
suffered.
To me, Nasser's response highlighted the difference between
the mature behavior of the Soviets and the adolescent behavior of the so-called
democracies … at least the English speaking ones in North
America . Nasser had told the interviewer that when a family in Egypt is hit by
a tragedy, friends and neighbors come to it bearing gifts to help repair some
of the damage, and ease the pain. The Soviets did this much in the aftermath of
our tragedy, said the Egyptian President, and left it at that.
As for me, I could not help but contrast the Soviet behavior
with what I was witnessing here in North America .
I was seeing journalists of every age treat the event (they called it a war not
a battle) as if it were a football game staged for their entertainment. They were
too immature to see the tragedy in an occurrence that killed a number of people
and scarred many more, perhaps for life.
Those were the developments that started me on an
intellectual journey I chose never to abandon. Sad to say that what I see after
all these years is a Russia
that has grown more mature than ever before. And I see an America that
sank deeper into adolescent behavior than ever before.
My interpretation is that the dissolution of the Soviet
Union has injected a large dose of maturity into Russia , adding to what was already
there. Also, it seems that America
being called “sole superpower,” has plunged it deeper into adolescent behavior.
From the cultural standpoint, the way that things will be
seen by the rest of the world, a showdown over Syria
between the two old rivals will turn America into a big time loser. But
if there is going to be cooperation between them, America 's decision makers must sear
into their brains one command from which they must never deviate. It is this:
“Whatever we say or do, it will have to be in the best
interest of the Syrian people. We'll never speak in terms of what's good for America (or worse, for Israel ) and
we'll never do anything that leads to that impression. On the contrary we'll
instantly repudiate the pundits that pretend to speak for the Administration
when trying to make it sound like America
is out there serving its interests or those of Israel ”.