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Date: 7 March 2012
'US continues to spread chaos across Syria'
“Providing military assistance to the Free Syrian Army and other opposition groups is necessary. The only realistic way to do so is with foreign air power,” said McCain in an address at the United States Senate.
He emphasized, however, that any such
effort must include the participation of other nations, particularly a
number of US-backed Arab kingdoms in the Middle East.
Syria has been the scene of violence for almost a year now. The opposition blames the government for the unrest while Damascus says foreign-backed armed groups are behind the violence and bloodshed.
Press TV has conducted an interview with Lawrence Davidson, professor of West Chester University, to get more on the issue. What follows is the text of the interview:
Press TV: Senator McCain has basically advocated every military option other than a full-scale invasion. Keeping in mind his leading role in the bombings of Libya and US dealings there which included CIA personnel operating on the ground in Libya, how much of weight do you think do his proposals carry?
Davidson: Well, hopefully they carry very little with the White House. John McCain is a member of a group of influential people who we used to call neoconservatives and they actually did have power under George Bush junior and we know where that led.
And so he is part of an effort to essentially keep the pressure on Obama and keep open this sort of military option both for Syria and Iran and I want to make one more statement that McCain naively says who do we want to win in Syria, our friends or our enemies?
I do not know who he thinks is going to take over if and when Bashar al-Assad falls but these people are not going to be friends of the United States.
I mean, this is a function of the fact that he just simply does not know what is going on, on the ground and he is simply babbling on. You know, for domestic US purposes in order to essentially push an Israeli lie.
So Mr. McCain hopefully will have very little influence in the White House but he had more in the Congress and we just have to hope that with that, these people can be kept at bay because they are warmongers and if they get their way, you will see bloodshed in Syria, you will see bloodshed in Iran just like you saw in Iraq.
Press TV: Arms have already been seized by Lebanon as they were making their way to Syria. What kind of a precedence does this set, considering we have seen its effects in post-Soviet Afghanistan and also in Libya where the militias are refusing to disarm?
Davidson: Right, I assume that we are capable --here in the West-- of making the same mistake over and over and over again but it must suggest that what the end of at least these certain subgroups like neoconservatives is essentially chaos and through chaos the weakening of states --that the one reason or another-- they find obnoxious.
And so they are willing to trade stability for chaos, if chaos is essentially what they think it takes to weaken these places.
Press TV: In the case of Syria --unlike Libya-- Western officials are clearly advocating the toppling of Assad's government. How significant is that distinction in your opinion?
Davidson: Toppling of the Assad’s government, I mean we have moved way beyond any respect for international law or any respect for the sovereignty of foreign governments.
None of that matters very much in the US. If there is an opportunity, you have elements within the US government who are perfectly willing to violate the Geneva Conventions and every resolution that were passed by the UN and go in and enforce regime change.
You just do not want these people in power if you can help it and you do not want to give them the opening because they will take it.
Syria has been the scene of violence for almost a year now. The opposition blames the government for the unrest while Damascus says foreign-backed armed groups are behind the violence and bloodshed.
Press TV has conducted an interview with Lawrence Davidson, professor of West Chester University, to get more on the issue. What follows is the text of the interview:
Press TV: Senator McCain has basically advocated every military option other than a full-scale invasion. Keeping in mind his leading role in the bombings of Libya and US dealings there which included CIA personnel operating on the ground in Libya, how much of weight do you think do his proposals carry?
Davidson: Well, hopefully they carry very little with the White House. John McCain is a member of a group of influential people who we used to call neoconservatives and they actually did have power under George Bush junior and we know where that led.
And so he is part of an effort to essentially keep the pressure on Obama and keep open this sort of military option both for Syria and Iran and I want to make one more statement that McCain naively says who do we want to win in Syria, our friends or our enemies?
I do not know who he thinks is going to take over if and when Bashar al-Assad falls but these people are not going to be friends of the United States.
I mean, this is a function of the fact that he just simply does not know what is going on, on the ground and he is simply babbling on. You know, for domestic US purposes in order to essentially push an Israeli lie.
So Mr. McCain hopefully will have very little influence in the White House but he had more in the Congress and we just have to hope that with that, these people can be kept at bay because they are warmongers and if they get their way, you will see bloodshed in Syria, you will see bloodshed in Iran just like you saw in Iraq.
Press TV: Arms have already been seized by Lebanon as they were making their way to Syria. What kind of a precedence does this set, considering we have seen its effects in post-Soviet Afghanistan and also in Libya where the militias are refusing to disarm?
Davidson: Right, I assume that we are capable --here in the West-- of making the same mistake over and over and over again but it must suggest that what the end of at least these certain subgroups like neoconservatives is essentially chaos and through chaos the weakening of states --that the one reason or another-- they find obnoxious.
And so they are willing to trade stability for chaos, if chaos is essentially what they think it takes to weaken these places.
Press TV: In the case of Syria --unlike Libya-- Western officials are clearly advocating the toppling of Assad's government. How significant is that distinction in your opinion?
Davidson: Toppling of the Assad’s government, I mean we have moved way beyond any respect for international law or any respect for the sovereignty of foreign governments.
None of that matters very much in the US. If there is an opportunity, you have elements within the US government who are perfectly willing to violate the Geneva Conventions and every resolution that were passed by the UN and go in and enforce regime change.
You just do not want these people in power if you can help it and you do not want to give them the opening because they will take it.
Reference : PressTV
