Putin Offer May Save Obama

Russian president Putin has just astonished the world by proposing that Assad´s chemical weapons be put under international control. Is this a cynical attempt to deflate the president´s eleventh hour appeal to the nation for a military strike? Has Assad signed on to this proposal? Is this another delaying tactic? Is it a phoenix that rose out of the ashes of a private tete-a-tete between Susan Rice and Putin´s foreign policy advisor?

 This is a dangerous situation, akin to the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. We have supported the idea of a limited military strike to demonstrate American strength and resolve to our foes. Obama, going to a Congress where politics prevails over patriotism, also seemed at first like a good idea, but it denied our military the opportunity to achieve strategic surprise. It is also interpreted by our foes as a president who may not have the courage of his convictions.

 Obama has zigzagged from resetting his policy with Russia and promising to be “more flexible” after the election, to likening his demeanor to that of a “bored schoolboy.” Putin is not a Jeffersonian Democrat, but rather an economically reform-minded autocrat who employs selective repression of dissent.

 Neither has he always been opposed to our policies. In the Moslem world and with his help, we were able to secure logistic support for our deployment in Afghanistan. In Iraq, the stated U.S. rationale for war was the supposed existence of WMD, which proved to be false. Moreover, we attempted nation building in a country with a profoundly different political culture and civilization than ours. The net result has been a growing Russian mistrust towards America’s objectives. The same mistrust has increasingly been shared by the American public.

 In Libya, the Russians supported the NATO military intervention with the U.S leading from behind. However, Benghazi-gate, its cover-up and the failure to prosecute the attackers, exposed the weakness of the president and growing acrimony within Congress.

 For the Russians, Syria is a special case, a country which was the last outpost of the former Soviet empire in the Mediterranean. The port of Tartus there is a Russian naval base. Damascus is also a recipient of large military aid, important to the Russian defense industry.

 Instead of acting after the outbreak of the civil war there two years ago, we provided some military aid to insurgents while allowing Al Qaeda elements to join the ranks of the rebels. Silently accepting Assad’s earlier chemical attacks, we failed to engage Russia in creative horse trading about the future of the Syrian regime. Putin unfortunately had a better assessment of our situation than most of our analysts. Indeed, we also thought Americans would rally around the president. But after three wars in the Middle East the American people were war weary eager to resolve problems at home.

 The key threat to America´s national security is international terrorism and thus we should craft a partnership with Russia. It too is threatened by Islamist groups in its Achilles heel, Chechnya and Dagestan. These authors are with the president as he faces an uphill battle with the Congress, since it could turn into perhaps the first international fiasco of American presidencies since Woodrow Wilson unsuccessfully pushed for entry into the League of Nations. As many Republicans relinquish their internationalism for opportunistic revenge against Obama, and leftists Dems continue their isolationist disengagement, the president has become a tragic figure.

 America has had economic and military crises before and has always recovered. It is likely one reason Putin has proposed international control of Assad´s chemical weapons. It is aimed at preventing an intervention and also to help President Obama. Is it going to succeed?