For more information write to politicsphere@gmail.com
As European Empires extended their reach after gains won in World War I, France and its Empire, extended their reach in Asia and the Middle East, this time, in 1920, France occupied and took control over what today is Syria. This occupation was part of a League of Nations mandate, which would come to last under 1946, when the French Republic would leave Syria and let it have independence. Since those times, relations between France and the Syrian Arab Republic have mostly remained close, and have been of tight political links, strong consultation and cooperation between the two governments, shared history, and sometimes shared values, although policy differences have been marked notably by differences in positions towards Lebanon; Most recently, relations were practically halted (in 2005) when Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri was assassinated and Syria was presumably implicated.
Although relations would later be normalized, since dictator Bashar Al-Assad started shelling his own people and massacring them, the French Republic and all its might and weight in the international arena, have been fighting and pushing for a change in Syria. They have repeatedly called for a democratic and pacifist stepping down of Tyrant Al-Assad, but since the beginning, they have brought military options to the table of the United Nations, with their Ministry of Foreign Affairs and their Mission to the United Nations pushing for a joint resolution where military force would be authorized, in order to assure hostilities are suspended.
French efforts might have been strong, but they haven't been enough to convince the western world to intervene militarily in the Syrian conflict, nevertheless, they have persuaded Washington and London to cooperate more closely with the opposition, and have prompted them to provide intelligence and information to those fighting the grip of Bashar Al-Assad. The French, were also among the first to recognize the Syrian National Council as the legitimate government of the Syrian people, meaning that they have fully officially declared their support towards the revolutionaries and their desires. Allegedly, their foreign policy has also been based around helping train rebel soldiers in neighboring Turkey, with the aid and help of the Saudi Kingdom and Qatar.
Most recently, western governments have been alarmed about the possibility that Chemical Weapons were used by the Assad government to try to shift the balance and retake control, this, would violate the so-called "red-lines" by the governments of the United States, United Kingdom and France. With the latest one having promised a "massive and blistering" response, which could include, but not be limited to, no-fly zones and naval strikes.
What is most important, is the need for France to continue pushing for change, and if necessary, the need for La Republique to intervene militarily and make Assad step down, for they must advocate in favor of human rights, and this would constitute one of the most important steps in the fight towards a greater and fairer society in the middle east. France will continue to be a key player in the Syrian Civil War, and not only because it has historic links, and of course, because of their interests in the middle east, but because their renewed Foreign Policy has been heavily focused on humanitarian missions and liberation from tyranny (most recently applied in Mali). The Fifth Republic must adopt a policy of strengthened positions, with unwavering arguments against the use of chemical weapons, and any methods of torture. As perhaps this, can help France regain its lost confidence in the international arena and recapture all the lost influence, specially in the middle east (They might even appeal to arabs with actions of this type).
It is time for someone to lead, and that someone has already begun doing so, it is now time to get more practical, France is the one to do it.
Vive la liberte, la fraternite, et l'egalite.
Written by Ricardo Madrid
No comments:
Post a Comment