Coming February 6, 2024 . . .
MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE
by Michael Wolraich
Pre-order at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop
Coming February 6, 2024 . . . MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE by Michael Wolraich Pre-order at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop |
Press release Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Jan. 11
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today made the following statement at a hearing on U.S. policy in Syria after the collapse of ISIS. The committee heard testimony from Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Satterfield.
“We thank our distinguished witness for being with us today. We regret the Defense Department was unable to send a witness.
“This is the committee’s second hearing of this Congress on the Syrian conflict, but it’s an issue that has been raised during many of our other meetings.
“To date, more than 400,000 people have been killed in the Syrian conflict. More than 12 million people – roughly half of all Syrians – are displaced, and the Assad regime bears overwhelming responsibility for this destruction and the extremism it has spawned.
“However, none of this would have been possible without the support of Iran and Russia, both of which intervened on Assad’s behalf to extend influence in the region and to counter the U.S. and its partners.
“With the support of the U.S. and coalition partners, the Syrian Democratic Forces succeeded in sweeping ISIS out of the capital of Raqqa in October.
“Of course, despite losing much of its territory in Syria and Iraq, ISIS remains a major threat. And there is also the ongoing danger posed by al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliates, which maintain significant influence in opposition-controlled areas.
“So, it’s worth highlighting two recent developments:
“First, the U.S., Russia, and Jordan signed a Memorandum of Principles on November 8th maintaining the administrative arrangements in opposition-held areas in southwest Syria. Yet Iran and its proxies have deepened their foothold in southern Syria, potentially exacerbating the conflict’s sectarian nature and risking further instability by threatening our ally Israel.
“Second, for the past two weeks, the Assad regime has pummeled Idlib and the Damascus suburb of East Ghouta, which are in the so-called ‘de-escalation’ zones. These attacks have killed at least dozens of civilians and displaced tens of thousands so far.
“I hope Ambassador Satterfield will provide details of what the U.S. is doing to counter Iran’s activities in southern Syria and assess the current prospects for resolving the Syrian civil war diplomatically.”
Click here for complete testimony and video footage of the hearing.
Comments
U.S.-led coalition helps to build new Syrian force, angering Turkey
By Tom Perry & Orhan Coskun @ Reuters, Jan. 14
by artappraiser on Sun, 01/14/2018 - 11:20pm
Surprised? Erdogan was a convenience, a fling. With Putin and Assad we're going steady.
by PeraclesPlease on Mon, 01/15/2018 - 11:13am
What I'd like to figure out is who is plotting this "foreign policy". Surely not Trump. All I have seen so far on the GOP Congressionals with some power to effect is an obsession with Iran, no doubt to appease AIPAC types.
But who in the cabinet is approving this kind of stuff?
Congress is supposed to as well? Maybe it would have helped if the DOD had shown up at the Committee hearing, mysterious that they didn't.
I feel like I can't even begin to disagree or approve with any of this kind of thing as we don't really know who is running the foreign policy nor what their big picture goals are! I imagine them just taking Trump's anti-ISIS, anti-terror stance as their guiding principle and just running with that, but we don't know the rhyme or reason because we don't even know who's giving the orders. Again: surely not Trump, surely he just rubber stamps what those people decide to put in his picture book briefings, if he has time to do even that inbetween watching Fox News, trying to manipulate the national discourse and other politicians and the media and the culture with tweet storms, golfing, catching up on what Bannon and Mueller are up to, and campaigning for his post presidential TV show.
by artappraiser on Mon, 01/15/2018 - 3:42pm
Hopeless: If someone like Samantha Power has no idea, what hope is there for ordinary news junkies to figure out what Trump admin foreign policy is?
from Susan B. Glasser @ Global Politico, Jan. 15
How Does Obama’s Foreign Policy Look a Year Into Trump?
A frank conversation with Samantha Power and Ben Rhodes
by artappraiser on Tue, 01/16/2018 - 6:34pm
Yeah, it's a Wonderwall.
by PeraclesPlease on Tue, 01/16/2018 - 10:44pm
The oracle finally speaks, serious talk @ Hoover Institution:
Tillerson: U.S. 'will maintain a military presence in Syria'
by artappraiser on Wed, 01/17/2018 - 7:49pm
A Syria Plan That Breaks the Law
Guest op-ed by (Senator) CORY A. BOOKER and OONA A. HATHAWAY @ NYTimes.com, Jan. 23
Cory A. Booker, Democrat of New Jersey, is a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Oona A. Hathaway is a professor at Yale Law School and the author of “The Internationalists.”
Last two paragraphs:
by artappraiser on Wed, 01/24/2018 - 6:43am