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Boston case could affect attempts to get Russian support for action in Syria
The possible link between the Boston Marathon bombings and Chechnya's struggle for independence from Russia is likely to harden Russian opposition to any outside intervention in Syria and complicate the question of whether to arm the Syrian rebels.Russia fought two wars to put down Chechen separatists and is accused of ongoing brutality involving what it calls terrorist elements in majority-Muslim Chechnya and the neighboring Russian republic of Dagestan. The experience underpins Russia's support for Syrian President Bashar Assad in his two-year fight to put down a rebellion he calls terrorism. With Chechnya in mind, Russia opposes U.N. Security Council action to punish Assad or support the rebels. Moscow also strongly opposes any international military action similar to the 2011 NATO no-fly zone in Libya. Russia continues to resupply Assad's army, which has fought the rebels to a deadlock in many parts of the country. The United States is edging toward stronger backing for the Syrian rebels and hopes to win at least tacit Russian assent for measures that could end the civil war short of supplying weapons. Still, Russia is leery of any international action that legitimizes the rebels. Secretary of State John Kerry will lobby his Russian counterpart on Syria early next week in their second meeting in three weeks. He is also meeting European and Persian Gulf partners that are much more deeply involved in Syria's civil war Posted by: tipper 2013-04-20 |
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