Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading again to the Center East because the Biden administration tries to form the unfolding chaos in Syria earlier than Donald Trump returns to the White Home.
Blinken is scheduled to depart Washington for the area on Wednesday, simply days after a surprisingly fast insurgent advance throughout Syria ousted the brutal dictator Bashar Al-Assad from the capital Damascus.
The journey is his twelfth to the area because the Israel-Hamas warfare broke out in late 2023, and can start in Jordan and proceed in Turkey, two key allies that each have lengthy borders with Syria.
“The Secretary will reiterate the US’ help for an inclusive, Syrian-led transition to an accountable and consultant authorities,” State Division spokesman Matthew Miller stated in a press release on Wednesday morning.
The autumn of the Assad regime, which had been supported by Iran and Russia, has led to jubilation amongst Syrians and large celebrations in Damascus. However the energy vacuum left by the sudden implosion of the federal government, and the rise of an Islamist rebel group backed by Turkey, has led to chaos and uncertainty that’s already being exploited by each home teams and regional gamers.
Israel has seized the second to attempt to be sure that the Assad regime’s weapons don’t fall into the palms of any Islamist teams, sending fighter jets on a whole bunch of airstrikes over the previous few days to destroy a lot of Syria’s naval and air pressure armaments. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu additionally despatched his armed forces right into a army buffer zone between the 2 international locations.
Different armed teams supported by Turkey have additionally made inroads towards US-supported Kurdish forces, who’ve been battling Islamic State militants. The US has about 900 troops primarily based in Syria to help that mission — which President Joe Biden has pledged to take care of.
However Trump, who will assume energy on Jan. 20, has been clear that he doesn’t contemplate Syria to be America’s drawback — and lots of observers consider he’ll pull US forces out of the beleaguered nation, which has been engulfed by civil warfare since 2011.
“Syria is a multitude, however shouldn’t be our good friend,” he wrote on X over the weekend. “The USA ought to don’t have anything to do with it. This isn’t our battle. Let it play out. Don’t become involved!”
A key focus now for the Biden administration and different neighboring international locations is stopping the resurgence of Islamic State, which emerged from the chaos of the disastrous 13-year civil warfare.
However one other essential precedence is attempting to make use of US leverage to forge the understandably chaotic present state of affairs into an ordered political course of.
A key a part of that leverage is US recognition of a brand new authorities, a transfer that will assist Syria keep away from the worldwide isolation that has befallen the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan.
On Tuesday, Blinken stated in a press release that the US could be ready to acknowledge a Syrian authorities that adhered to sure ideas. He stated a brand new authorities should respect the rights of Syria’s minorities, assist get assist to all these in want, stop the nation from getting used as a base for terrorism or threatening neighbors, and guarantee chemical weapons stockpiles are secured and destroyed.
On the identical time, the Biden administration’s makes an attempt during the last 12 months to affect occasions within the Center East have largely failed — most notably because the warfare in Gaza has dragged on and when Israel ignored US warnings to develop the battle with an invasion of Lebanon to confront the Hezbollah militia.
Whereas within the Center East, Blinken may even focus on the necessity for a ceasefire and hostage deal within the Israel-Hamas warfare in Gaza, in addition to efforts to observe the cessation of hostilities settlement between Israel and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, the State Division stated.
