Wanted: A Strong Stand Against Russia

2015/11/25 1:20:43

Herbst on Putin: “Tiptoeing around an adventurer, or at least this adventurer, is an invitation to more aggression.”

 


By John E. Herbst for the New Atlanticist, Nov 24, 2015:

 

The shoot-down by Turkish fighters of a Russian warplane in Turkish airspace is an event of major significance in Syria, Ukraine, and beyond. 

 

The savage attack by the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) in Paris on Nov. 13 has prompted French President François Hollande to seek a grand coalition with the United States and Russia against ISIS. The downing of the Russian jet, in or (if one accepts the Kremlin version) near Turkish airspace and over Syrian territory without any ISIS presence is a reminder that Moscow’s military effort in Syria has been devoted principally to 1) attacking opposition groups backed by the West, and 2) embarrassing NATO (with at least two prior incursions into Turkish airspace acknowledged by Moscow). 

 

Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated clearly that to cooperate with Russia in Syria, the West must recognize that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is going nowhere.  All this means that Moscow is willing to work with the West against ISIS on its terms.

 

The downing of the Russian warplane will seriously complicate President Hollande’s coalition-building efforts.  NATO is meeting right now at Turkey’s request.  While it did not invoke Article 4, Turkey has every right to expect NATO support in the face of repeated Russian incursions into its airspace.  Can President Hollande visit Moscow tomorrow, November 25, as planned?  If he does, the conversation will be very different than it would have been before this event.

 

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http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ ... rong-stand-against-russia

 

John E. Herbst is the Director of the Atlantic Council’s Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center. He served as the US Ambassador to Ukraine from 2003 to 2006.

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