Confusing ends and means
The United States, France, and others who advocate a military strike to punish Syria and deter it and others from using chemical weapons are confusing noble and legitimate aims with illegitimate, thuggish, and counter-productive means. Military strikes should be undertaken only when all other options have been exhausted, or if a legitimate international mandate for such strikes is obtained from the UN Security Council. The latter seems impossible now due to Russian opposition, so the first thing the U.S. and others should do is wait for the UN team that examined the sites where the weapons were used to turn in their report in about a week’s time.
After that report is delivered, if the government is clearly guilty as charged, the U.S. and others can apply every available international means of inquiry, sanctions, retaliation, punishment or other options, through the International Criminal Court, UN General Assembly, UN Human Rights Council, and a dozen other existing international bodies that can be used to make clear to Syria or others that chemical weapons must never be used under any circumstances. If need be, a new tribunal can be established to investigate and try the perpetrators.
At the same time, all those who oppose the Assad government should provide massive assistance to the rebels who seek to topple him. Pro-Assad countries and movements are supporting the Syrian government, so its opponents should go all out to provide the aid and training needed to turn the military tide and bring down the government. This is the biggest regional and global proxy war in a century. It has no political solution. It will have to run its course, unfortunately for the Syrians above all, but also for the entire region that is absorbing severe shocks from the conflict in many forms.
Rami G. Khouri is Director of the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut.This post is part of U.S.-Syria Perspectives, a project developed by the International Program at Carnegie Corporation of New York.
