Iraq threatens Turkey with UN action over troop deployment

[Jefferson23]

Iraq has threatened to go to the UN if Turkey does not withdraw soldiers it sent to areas near the northern Iraqi city of Mosul within 48 hours.

Baghdad said the deployment was done without consultation and was a violation of national sovereignty.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu defended the move as routine troop rotation at a pre-established camp.

Mosul has been under the control of militants from the so-called Islamic State group since last year.

Turkey deployed hundreds of its forces to the town of Bashiqa to train Iraqi Kurdish forces fighting IS.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35023249

[bemildred]

1. U.S. coalition airstrike targets Syrian army for first time

DAMASCUS, Dec. 7 -- U.S.-led coalition airplanes struck positions of the Syrian army in the country's eastern province on Sunday evening, local media reported.

The airstrike caused casualties for the Syrian army in the Ayash area in the country's eastern province of Deir al-Zour, though the exact number was unknown, pro-government Sham FM radio reported.

The attack is the first of such incidents to have targeted the Syrian government troops since the U.S.-led coalition started its operations specifically against the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria over a year ago.

Further details surrounding this incident are still forthcoming, the report said.

http://en.people.cn/n/2015/1207/c90000-8987017.html

[bemildred]

2. U.S. Coalition Envoy Denies Deadly Syria Airstrike

http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-coalition-envoy-denies-deadly-syria-airstrike-1449491358

[Jefferson23]

9. Going with plan A no matter what, I guess. I read your other links...this looks to be

precariously bad times ahead.

[bemildred]

12. Yep, everybody is off script now.

Excellent chance of Russia and Turkey getting into it, I'd say, and Iran etc. too. In fact I'd say Russia and Turkey are getting into it at this point, fact not probability.

"Regional War".

But apparently NATO is not dumb enough to jump in too, yet.

Putin's move.

[Jefferson23]

14. Exactly and as if the West doesn't know the risks? ha. Disturbing at best and once again,

they're playing with fire. They won't be able to control not only the outcome but
also the residual shit that we've seen since Iraq...but they'll go ahead anyway.
I don't see how Turkey goes about this without NATO..I hope I am wrong.

From your asia times link:


snip*Russia will closely watch how Washington handles its alliance with the Syrian Kurds, who happen to be a bulwark against the Islamic State. The US has a tradition of throwing the Kurds under the bus after using them, and in the present case, Turkey’s cooperation is vital for the American regional strategies.

Be that as it may, Erdogan is also holding stage balls and silicon balls and hopes to keep juggling them ad infinitum. If his stage ball would be Qatar – a military base in Qatar brings Turkey dramatically to Iran’s doorstep in the Persian Gulf – his silicon ball would be the West’s acquiescence, whilst he experiments with the Russian ball.

As a Russian warship passed through Bosphorous last week on its way to the Mediterranean, a Turkish submarine casually surfaced alongside. And a couple of days later, on Sunday, when Ceasar Kunikov, another Russian warship, passed through the Bosphorous, the Turkish footage on camera caught a sailor on board holding a ground-to-air missile. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu reacted saying, “This is provocation, this is a harassing passage”. Clearly, this is a developing story.

[bemildred]

13. I will hazard a guess:

The Turks and Sauds intend to take control of the Sunni region of Iraq/Syria and stand up a government acceptable to them, perhaps the Kurds in Iraq, not sure what in Syria, and incidentally get control of that oil and save the jihadis. And Balkanizing/weakening Iraq is a plus too.

Barzani seems to be throwing in with the Turks.

And I won't be surprised if Putin decides to bomb the shit out of that Turkish base in Iraq at all.

The US is schizophrenic as always, but I think we intend to see how the Turks do and what the Russian answer is. The Turks are doing a reconnaissance-in-force for us, so to speak.

[Jefferson23]

15. When I read how the US blew off the money from the oil connection to Turkey I knew

whatever came next would be pretty bad...but not this bad.

Games of chicken with super powers are really stupid and yet that seems
to be exactly where we are.

Your guess as to what they want makes sense..from their perspectives.

[bemildred]

16. "They always double down." nt

[bemildred]

3. Iraqi Kurdistan asks Russia to avoid Kurdish airspace for Syria missions

HEWLÊR-Erbil, Kurdistan region ‘Iraq’,— Karim Sinjari, the interior minister of Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), met with Russian Consul General to Erbil Victor Simakov on Monday to hold talks regarding Kurdistan suspending flights at the Erbil and Sulaimani airports as Russian jets fly over the region on missions to Syria.

Sinjari reportedly asked Simakov to request Moscow find an alternate route for its aircraft and cruise missiles that avoids using the Kurdistan region’s airspace.

Simakov promised to discuss the matter with the Russian government and said that currently there is no other way for Moscow to avoid Kurdish airspace.

Additionally, Simakov told Rudaw that during the meeting the KRG interior minister was informed of the arrival of Russian military aid to Kurdish Peshmerga forces, including light weapons.

http://ekurd.net/kurds-ask-russia-avoid-airspace-2015-12-07

[bemildred]

4. The Latest: Iraq's foreign minister warns Turkey anew

2:30 p.m.

Iraq's Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari has warned Turkey that the deadline for the withdrawal of additional Turkish forces from Iraq's north expires on Tuesday.

He said on Monday that unless Turkish troops pullout, Iraq intends to raise the matter before the United National Security Council.

Turkey says its troops have been stationed at a small base outside of the Iraqi city of Mosul since last year as part of a training mission coordinated with the Iraqi government in Baghdad.

However, the arrival of additional Turkish forces on Friday sparked uproar in the Iraqi capital amid exaggerated media reports.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/ISLAMIC_STATE_THE_LATEST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-12-07-07-30-45

[bemildred]

5. I used to mock non-interventionists like Corbyn, but events have proved them right

I hate to say it, but Jeremy Corbyn is right where I have been wrong. Corbyn’s protest that the Syrian intervention displays a ‘lack of a strategy worth the name, the absence of credible ground troops, the missing diplomatic plan for a Syrian settlement…’ was spot on. I am embarrassed to say that last year, I penned a rather conceited piece – for Spectator Australia, no less – in which I mocked proponents of non-intervention against the millennial, genocidal fascists of Isis. Having watched events since publication, I feel little but embarrassment.

True, it makes little sense to restrict our campaign to Iraq: as James Forsyth rightly noted, Isis don’t recognise international borders, operating in Iraq, Syria, and other territorialities simultaneously through recognised ’emirates’. But the West’s campaign against Isis has a fundamental weakness: there is no political will for the sort of enormous effort, both military and diplomatic, that it would take to truly defeat them. The West has become akin to a drunk desperately flinging his expensive watch down on the table for another hand of Texas hold’em: gambling on new success where all previous attempts have failed.

Take the situation in Iraq, where the split between Shia and Sunni predates Isis and – as David Petraeus warned almost a decade ago – is becoming increasingly violent. Iraqi Sunnis view Isis as imperfect masters, but preferable to the Shia-dominated government in Baghdad, whose security forces wrought havoc against Iraqi Sunnis, and whose policies have disenfranchised them. (The chilling reports of Sunnis being murdered by Iraq’s security apparatus was masterfully captured in Fred Kaplan’s superb The Insurgents.) In return, Sunnis actively took up arms against the Iraqi Security Forces when Isis began their annexation of Iraqi territory last year. For us to obliterate Isis-driven Toyotas in Syria does nothing to alleviate this fundamental schism in Iraq’s domestic politics.

http://blogs.new.spectator.co.uk/2015/12/i-used-to-mock-non-interventionists-like-corbyn-but-events-have-proved-them-right/

[KoKo]

17. He makes a good point about "Texas hold'em"--but the War Frenzy is on here in U.S.

True, it makes little sense to restrict our campaign to Iraq: as James Forsyth rightly noted, Isis don’t recognise international borders, operating in Iraq, Syria, and other territorialities simultaneously through recognised ’emirates’. But the West’s campaign against Isis has a fundamental weakness: there is no political will for the sort of enormous effort, both military and diplomatic, that it would take to truly defeat them. The West has become akin to a drunk desperately flinging his expensive watch down on the table for another hand of Texas hold’em: gambling on new success where all previous attempts have failed.

AND, he concludes his article with:

It is probably politically sensible of David Cameron to extend Britain’s role in the anti-Isis campaign. But Britain and the wider West have no teeth for the fight that it would take to truly defeat Isis. For all the hyperbole, lobbing missiles into Raqqa will not do much to combat the threat from IS. What’s needed instead is stringent counter-terrorism at home.

From my brief view of CNN this morning, I'd say they were in a Counter Terrorism frenzy mode with a CNN Poll, (with no polling stats stated of who they interviewed and the specific questions asked), they said 63% of Americans want "Boots on the Ground." Pentagon Reporter Barbara Starr was breathlessly ranting and media regulars David Gergen and Gloria Borger were complaining about Obama's address to the Nation not offering any key solutions to the American People. They thought he was weak and unprepared.

There were discussions of revisiting our policy on Terrorists Alerts (remember the "Color Codes&quot which need to be updated according to Strafor and some other Military Intelligence watchers and to revise our restrictions on Terrorist Interrogations (remember "Water Boarding" and other extreme measures like leading prisoners around on dog leashes, plus anal rape?)

I felt I was back to "9/11" .....

I have to admit I watched nothing on the Cables the whole weekend and not even Obama's Address to the Nation because I knew it would be "Terra, Terra, Terra" Fear Mongering and having heard it all before and lived through what that means, I just didn't have the stomach for it. I turned it on this a.m. hoping some of it had died down. Obviously I was too hopeful....and should have known better. I will not make that mistake again.

[bemildred]

20. "They always double down".

When failure is not an option, bigger failure always is.

The Spectator is a paleo-con sort of British magazine, I posted that because like our Libertarians they tend anti-interventionist, and in the context of the current frenzy, that was different.

[KoKo]

22. I did see a snip on MSNBC before pulling the plug...

of Libertarian Repub Rand Paul offering a non-interventionist view on the ME that was very reasonable and well stated. Frankly, I was glad to see that they allowed him to speak in the midst or the "More War" frenzy. And, I did enjoy reading the Spectator article because it was a different voice.

[bemildred]

6. As British Parliament Votes for Airstrikes, Public Mood Shifts Further Away From Intervention

This week, 397 MPs voted in favour of air strikes against so-called ISIS targets in Syria. This has been translated to an overwhelming victory for the government which proposed the motion to bomb Syria.

Even if we accept that the UK Parliament is representative of the British population, the 223 members who voted against the airstrikes are meant to represent about 22,000,000 British citizens. This is a significant proportion of the population which has been completely ignored. Compared to the 412 votes for and 149 votes against the invasion of Iraq in 2003, we could say there has been a shift towards non-intervention in the House of Commons.

We have heard many MPs, particularly Labour, came under pressure to support the position of Leader of the Opposition and vote down the motion. Pressure from below has been underway for some time and it is fair to say the mainstream media and tabloids have done as much as possible to suppress these voices.

Britain's involvement in recent conflicts of Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya still weighs heavily on the conscience of much of the British population. The invasion of Afghanistan, in particular, was a rush to war in retaliation to the September 11 attacks, not too dissimilar, in nature, with the reactionary call for military intervention in Syria Wednesday December 2, less than three weeks after the attacks in Paris.

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/mostafa-rajaai/as-british-parliament-vot_b_8717466.html

[KoKo]

25. ...!

If only... And...we could use a reminder on our side of the pond of what these endless wars have cost the American people.

At a time where cuts to public services have made it impossible for many in the UK to make ends meet, it is questionable how the government can justify £1m per mission for an unlimited length of time without any proof or evidence that it will benefit Syrian or British people in any meaningful way.

The trend of Western military intervention has been fairly consistent over the past couple of decades, destructive and self defeating. Despite this, there doesn't seem to be any willingness to think of a different solution to the problem. As the old saying goes 'If your only tool is a hammer then every problem looks like a nail'. The public, especially the younger generation, who have more access to independent media sources compared to previous generations and have seen Muslim countries being bombed to the stone ages from early childhood, has had enough.

Although many feel emotionally drained and furious after the vote to engage in Syria, the anti war movement will only grow in light of this latest military engagement. Students from all over the country are planning actions to oppose airstrikes and will not rest until they are finally listened to.

[bemildred]

7. Nusra fighters surrender to regime in south Syria

BEIRUT – Over 100 fighters in the Al-Nusra Front have handed themselves over to Syrian regime forces in the southern province of Daraa, according to both activist and pro-regime media.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Monday morning that “over 100 members of an Islamism faction handed themselves over to regime forces in the Daraa countryside,” without specifying the location or affiliation of the surrendering fighters.

“It remains unknown whether the handover was carried out through a prior agreement with regime forces or not,” the monitoring NGO added.

The SOHR’s report came a day after the pro-rebel Syria Mubasher outlet said that 180 Nusra militants had turned themselves over, along with their weapons and cars, to regime forces in Izraa, which lies on the highway connecting Daraa and Sanamayn, home to one of the regime’s most fortified bases in southern Syria.

https://now.mmedia.me/lb/en/NewsReports/566342-nusra-fighters-surrender-to-regime-in-south-syria

[bemildred]

8. NATO says won’t send ground troops to fight IS: report

NATO has ruled out sending ground troops to fight against Islamic State militants in Syria, NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg told a Swiss newspaper, stressing the need to bolster local forces in the conflict.

“That is not on the agenda of the coalition and the NATO allies,” he told the Tages-Anzeiger paper when asked about dispatching ground forces to accompany air strikes.

“The United States has a limited number of special forces. In the foreground, however, is strengthening local forces. This is not easy, but it’s the only option,” he added.

Stoltenberg stressed that the conflict was not a war between the West and the Islamic world, but rather against “extremism and terrorism”.

http://atimes.com/2015/12/nato-says-wont-send-ground-troops-to-fight-is-report/

[bemildred]

10. Turkey returns to Mosul leading another ‘Arab Revolt’

With the announcement last week of the setting up of two Turkish military bases in the Middle East – Qatar and Iraq – the geopolitics of the region is poised for a historic transformation. Turkey is reclaiming its Ottoman legacy with a vengeance and this time around, it is Turkey who will ride the Arab Revolt, which a century ago in an earlier form at the supervision of Imperial Britain had reduced it from an empire to a nation state.

Contrary to the prevailing narrative of President Recep Erdogan being a maverick who made a mess of his country’s promising future, he looks proactive and self-assured and demands serious attention. Erdogan is juggling more than one ball and not all of them are Russian balls. By the idiom of the sport of juggling, Edogan plays simultaneously with beanbags, stage balls, and silicon balls.

He likes beanbags because of the ease with which they can be caught and their availability, stage balls for their dramatic effect, silicon balls for their easy grip and catch (although expensive in price), and he has a passion for Russian balls, which are cheap and well-suited for experimentation.

Each of them has a different use for Erdogan. The setting up of the Turkish military base in Mosul, northern Iraq, is a beanbag, of course. It comes cheap and is easily secured, but has valuable use against the backdrop of the maelstrom of Kurdish nationalism, energy security and the threat of Islamic State – and the broader regional backdrop of Iran’s rise – swirling in the region.

http://atimes.com/2015/12/turkey-returns-to-mosul-leading-another-arab-revolt/

[bemildred]

11. . nt

[KoKo]

18. Interesting....

And, he does seem to have a keen sense of humor... Although, maybe I read this wrong...

Erdogan is juggling more than one ball and not all of them are Russian balls. By the idiom of the sport of juggling, Edogan plays simultaneously with beanbags, stage balls, and silicon balls.

[bemildred]

19. Hard to say.

I do think Bhadrakumar thinks Erdogan is making his move, and the Sauds, and they are gambling. And I have to agree, although they seem to be a bit tentative about it so far. Which is why I used the term "reconnaissance in force" up there, they are looking to see who responds and how.

Seems almost Bush-like.

[Jefferson23]

21. Turkey summons Russian ambassador over missile launcher

1 hour ago

Turkey has summoned the Russian ambassador after a serviceman on a Russian naval ship allegedly brandished a rocket launcher while the vessel passed through Istanbul at the weekend.

Images published in Turkish media appeared to show the Russian on deck, resting the launcher on his shoulder.

Relations between the two countries have deteriorated sharply since Turkey last month shot down a Russian fighter jet, which it said was in its airspace.

The Russian jet pilot was killed.

Turkey has expressed outrage over the images of the alleged rocket launcher. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu called the incident a "provocation".

The pictures showed the Russian serviceman on board the Caesar Kunikov as it passed through the Bosphorus strait.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-35028798

[bemildred]

23. They continue to try to provoke.

What is wanted is a violent response, the pretext for war.

What will Putin do? Hmm.

[Jefferson23]

32. I don't know how he'll do it..what would he be content with, at least for now.

Doesn't Russia depend on access to the Turkish Straits?

Maybe Putin will think about pissing him off by helping the PKK more
with money and wait for that to drive Erdogan crazy..which it seems
to do fairly effectively. Turkey could be vulnerable to Russia
influencing the whole heroin thing too..they have lots of
crazy gangs there who could cause Erdogan civil trouble he doesn't
want...lots of possible proxy retaliation seems possible.

But I must say your guess earlier is more likely the reaction. It just
freaks me out to think about it.

[bemildred]

35. Closing the straits would be a casus belli in spades, too provocative without some pretext.

Other nations besides Russia would be affected. And Europe will not go along, they want the refugee river to stop. I think Putin is already doing an excellent job of driving Erdogan nuts by bombing flat the Turkmen in Latakia where the plane was shot down and shutting down the oil trade. I think the Turkish game is to get Putin to do something that will justify/require NATO support, not unlike what went on in Ukraine, and Putin's to avoid that and keep winning the war in Syria on the ground.

"The West" is divided about what to do. I don't believe I've ever seen or heard of quite such a mess.

[Jefferson23]

38. My reasoning:

If Russia uses force, if Erdogan does not leave Iraq, Erdogan could respond with a shut off
of the Straits. How does NATO respond to Russia at that point, I don't know..one would hope
Erdogan would be screwed, yet as I said..the signal the US released for public consumption that the
IS oil money was not significant is troubling.

There are many ifs..yet it is pretty clear Obama would need to abandon his enemies
from within..my term for the US neocons who advise him, if he is to adopt a different
approach on Syria/Assad and presuming Putin agrees to limit his goals too.


It's concerning to see power plays with the back drop of ISIS..opportunity is
one thing amidst a crisis but this is completely nuts...and ripe for it to become
much worse.

[bemildred]

41. Well I'm not saying it won't come to that, just I think not yet.

I think they will proxify the fighting, in Armenia and Iraq, and perhaps via PKK in Turkey too, like you say, or the Caucasus, and closing the straits would result in direct fighting, at least to force them open again, and piss off a lot of people who are not party to the dispute.

Where the US finally comes down is a good question, right now our position is incoherent and it seems there are various cliques and cabals pursuing independent agendas.

[Jefferson23]

42. Understood, and those are my speculations which may end up having about as much clarity

as dense fog.

We have seen so many bad things occur in the recent past, this I should be
accustom to by now..but I'm not.

[bemildred]

24. Turkey defends ground troops in Iraq as war escalates

Turkey said on Monday it would not withdraw hundreds of soldiers who arrived last week at a base in northern Iraq, despite being ordered by Baghdad to pull them out within 48 hours.

The sudden arrival of such a large and heavily armed Turkish contingent in a camp near the frontline in northern Iraq has added yet another controversial deployment to a war against Islamic State fighters that has drawn in most of the world's major powers.

Ankara says the troops are there as part of an international mission to train and equip Iraqi forces to fight against Islamic State. The Iraqi government says it never invited such a force, and will take its case to the United Nations if they are not pulled out.

Washington, which is leading an international coalition against Islamic State that includes Turkey, Arab states and European powers like Britain and France, has told Ankara and Baghdad to resolve the standoff, and says it does not support deployments in Iraq without Baghdad's consent.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-turkey-idUSKBN0TQ0SS20151207

[Cayenne]

39. Won't the UN have to weigh in now?

[bemildred]

40. There is going to be a UNSC meeting about it soon.

We will have to see what comes out of that. Should be an interesting argument.

[bemildred]

44. UN diplomat: Russia to raise Turkey's military action at UN

UNITED NATIONS (AP) -- A U.N. Security Council diplomat says Russia plans to raise Turkey's military action in Syria and Iraq at a closed meeting of the council on Tuesday.

The diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity Monday because contacts were private, said Russia gave no details of what it will say.

Russian-Turkish tensions have escalated following Turkey's downing of a Russian warplane near its border with Syria last month.

Moscow denies the aircraft entered Turkish airspace and says its warplanes have been targeting extremist groups near the border. Ankara says the Russian airstrikes have been aimed at moderate militant groups made up of ethnic Turks who oppose the Syrian government.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/UN_UNITED_NATIONS_RUSSIA_TURKEY?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-12-07-19-34-51

[bemildred]

26. US official: Russia strike killed Syria government troops

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A senior U.S. military official says the United States is "certain" that it was a Russian airstrike that killed three Syrian soldiers and wounded 13 others.

The U.S. has said it was not a coalition strike, but Syria's government accused the U.S.-led alliance of bombing the army camp and hitting troops loyal to President Bashar Assad (bah-SHAR' AH'-sahd).

The city of Der el-Zour, where the strikes are said to have been carried out on Sunday, is mainly held by the Islamic State group, but the Syrian government maintains a presence in some parts of it.

The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, so spoke on condition of anonymity.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_UNITED_STATES_SYRIA?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-12-07-11-34-31

[KoKo]

45. We see a lot of this in "reporting" don't we...

"The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, so spoke on condition of anonymity."

Your article below from "Syria: Direct" at least has someone trying to make sense....but, then, how do we know.

That's the problem with the "Fog of War" and too many "Cooks in the Kitchen."

Not only is our own Govt. not able to get its act together but no one else seems to know what's going on because of the competing interests.

But, then, you know all that. 's. I only mention because I needed to personally "vent" in frustration about all of this..

[bemildred]

46. "This is bullshit, but ..."

It's a way to treat speculative gossip like it was news.

[bemildred]

27. Which planes hit the Syrian regime base in Deir e-Zor?

What do you know about the bombing?

Our correspondents in Deir e-Zor observed three planes carrying out the bombing, which occurred on the outskirts of the military base, hitting one of its barracks. Most pro-regime news sources have reported that three soldiers were killed and others injured. This is the information that has been verified 100 percent so far.

http://syriadirect.org/news/which-planes-hit-the-syrian-regime-base-in-deir-e-zor/

[bemildred]

28. URGENT: Russian Fighter Jets Start Using Two More Airbases in Syria

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Syrian government issued permission to the Russian air force to use two airports in Homs province - in addition to Khmeimim airbase in Lattakia - to attack terrorists across the country.

According to the Kommersant newspaper, the Russian army now plans to start deploying a large number of forces and air defense systems in Shairat and Tias airports in Homs province.

According to informed sources in the Russian defense ministry, the country's pilots will use the two airports for fueling and repairs.

The sources were quoted as saying that "Tias and Shairat airports are much better than Lattakia's Khmeimim airbase for providing logistics and air cover to the Syrian ground forces".

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13940916001377

[KoKo]

29. Homs seems to be a safer location..to avoid Kurdistan air space?

Last edited Mon Dec 7, 2015, 04:23 PM - Edit history (1)

Although, I don't understand how the Russians were flying over Iraq's Kurdistan Airspace since they've been using the Latakia base which is on the Mediterranean. Why would they be flying over Iraq? Is this just a warning, grandstanding by Iraqi Kurds influenced by Turkey?

From your post earlier:

Iraqi Kurdistan asks Russia to avoid Kurdish airspace for Syria missions
HEWLÊR-Erbil, Kurdistan region ‘Iraq’,— Karim Sinjari, the interior minister of Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), met with Russian Consul General to Erbil Victor Simakov on Monday to hold talks regarding Kurdistan suspending flights at the Erbil and Sulaimani airports as Russian jets fly over the region on missions to Syria.

Sinjari reportedly asked Simakov to request Moscow find an alternate route for its aircraft and cruise missiles that avoids using the Kurdistan region’s airspace

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1133&pid=14547

[bemildred]

31. The missions coming over Kurdish space come from the Caspian Basin.

The Homs bases mean better close air support and much shorter response times for air support.

Probably will help take Palmyra for example, and defend/re-take Damascus.

[KoKo]

33. Thanks...!

My map search didn't go that far. Duh...I thought I must be missing something. Yep, the Caspian Base and where they sent the missiles over Iraq into Syria, if I remember correctly.

Anyway, Homs does seem the better location and taking back Palmyra and Damascus would be a good thing, if they can succeed.

[Jefferson23]

30. That's just peachy....oh yea, I bet they are much better logistically..sigh.

Guardian opinion piece today, sees Erdogan going rogue and will
feel the heat soon.

[Jefferson23]

34. *Many foreign powers and their local proxies are fighting for supremacy in Syria, but none has so

so far shown the strength to win.

Title War on Isis: Complicated Syrian battlefield increases chances of air strikes hitting the wrong targets

4 minutes ago

The battlefield in Syria and Iraq is getting more complicated by the day. The Syrian government says that US aircraft attacked Saeqa army camp, firing nine rockets that killed three soldiers and wounded 13. This is denied by the US military, which says it is “certain” that Russian aircraft carried out the attack.

It is impossible to be sure what really happened. But the alleged air strike underlines the extent to which those involved in the war are intertwined and pursue separate enemies and agendas. The attack took place in Deir Ezzor province, which is mostly controlled by Isis, but there are pockets of government held territory such as Saeqa camp.

Western governments have alleged that the Syrian government has not been fighting Isis in the east of the country. This is largely untrue, but President Bashar al-Assad has played down the conflict there because it has produced a series of government defeats by Isis which has filmed its fighters executing Syrian soldiers by shooting or decapitation. Syrian forces backed by Russian airpower are now intending to launch an offensive to recapture Palmyra, which Isis captured in May.

Eastern Syria is mostly held by Isis, but the Syrian Kurds have taken much of the northern border area, cutting Isis off from Turkey. Ankara is adamant that it will not allow the Kurds to attack west of the Euphrates to close Isis’s last access and exit point to the outside world. The US is pressuring Turkey to seal the border to Isis by sending up to 30,000 troops to close off the area from the north. The Russians have increased their bombing of the border area in north-west Syria to seal off non-Isis Syrian opposition forces from Turkey.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/war-on-isis-complicated-syrian-battlefield-increases-chances-of-errant-air-strikes-a6764026.html

[bemildred]

36. Putin has warded off attempts to isolate Russia

---

It could be expected that the West would try to make Russia pay a high cost for its move and work against its success.

However, the massive refugee influx into Europe and the terrible Paris terrorist attacks have altered the storyline, with calls, led by France, for a united coalition against the IS that would include Russia.

It is this that would explain why Turkey took the rash decision to down the Russian bomber over northern Syria, as the developing scenario would have cut the ground from under Turkey’s goals there, tainted with neo-Ottoman ambitions.

Russia-Turkey relations have plummeted as a result, with costs on both sides. By moving his most advanced air defence system towards the Turkish border Russia has in fact imposed a reverse no-fly zone over Syria, effectively preventing any Turkish incursions into Syria against the Kurds or in support for anti-Assad groups.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/indianews/article-3350044/Putin-warded-attempts-isolate-Russia.html?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490

[bemildred]

37. US and Russia: time for reconciliation

In an article published in Le Monde diplomatique’s English blog on 2 July, I suggested that Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin had mutual interests in the Middle East, and elsewhere, which were drawing them together. The rift over Ukraine might well be overcome by diplomacy, provided Obama could divorce the resurgent neoconservatives in Defence, State and CIA, with their ambition to bring about a Unipolar world, and provided Putin listened more often to his foreign affairs advisers and less to his security chiefs and the old KGB ‘Silovki’ that he brought with him when he first became president in 2000.

Since Russia entered the Syrian civil war with air strikes on 30 September, there has been a mass of speculation in the ‘western’ media about his intentions, notably whether his Russia is bidding to replace the US in the Middle East — and in the coverage Putin is always presented as ‘the bad guy’. But to find out more, let us follow the cardinal rule in diplomacy — to see every problem from the viewpoint of your opponent — in this case not just Putin but Russia.

Towards the end of the 18th century the Tsarist Russian empire expanded into the Caucasus triggering massive armed opposition from the Chechens. They were united by Sheikh Mansour who preached the extreme militant form of Sunni Islam advocated by Ibn Abd al-Wahhab, now termed Wahhabism. This was formally embraced by the House of Saud in 1744 and remains the religion of Saudi Arabia to this day. Russian attempts to subdue the Chechens failed despite Tsarist General Yermolov’s cruel ‘pacification’, which appeared to have succeeded in 1864 after a second Chechen rebellion. Although Chechnya is now effectively ’pacified’ under Ramzan Kadyrov, a Chechen who defected to Russia, Chechen terrorists continue to present a serious threat to Russian security.

This history has put the Russians on the side of Iran’s extremist Shia Islam — also much influenced by Wahhabi doctrine - and President Assad’s neo-Shia Alawites in Syria. Russia’s other interest is its small naval facility in Tartus, important as the only one servicing its Mediterranean fleet.

http://mondediplo.com/blogs/us-and-russia-time-for-reconciliation

[KoKo]

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