Nothing highlights the strategic irrelevance of Syria to the US than how much the farcical diddle-do about Syrian chemical weapons has been driven by miscalculations and diplomatic gaffes. Slightly more than a year ago, President Obama made an unprepared remark about the potential use of chemical weapons by Bashar al-Assad, saying that “it would change his calculus,” later elaborating that it would constitute a “red line.” The president almost surely did not expect this blunder to corner him into taking military action against Syria under the threat of undermining US credibility.
A Comedy of Errors
A Comedy of Errors
A Comedy of Errors
Nothing highlights the strategic irrelevance of Syria to the US than how much the farcical diddle-do about Syrian chemical weapons has been driven by miscalculations and diplomatic gaffes. Slightly more than a year ago, President Obama made an unprepared remark about the potential use of chemical weapons by Bashar al-Assad, saying that “it would change his calculus,” later elaborating that it would constitute a “red line.” The president almost surely did not expect this blunder to corner him into taking military action against Syria under the threat of undermining US credibility.