‘SNC has no military capacity or political vision in Syria’
The assessment of the security, military, and political situation inside Syria publicly expressed by the US is completely divorced from reality, Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of Pan-African News Wire, told RT, calling it a PR campaign for US Senators.
RT:The US recognized the Syrian National
Coalition as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people
back in 2012. Why is it giving them even more recognition right
now?
Abayomi Azikiwe: It has to actually do a lot
with the political and military situation on the ground in Syria.
The rebels have suffered a tremendous amount of setbacks over the
last year and a half. Of course, last year the US was on the
verge of launching a major aerial bombardment of Syria, but due
to the diplomatic efforts of Russia and other forces – including
anti-war peace movements inside the US and Europe – they were
forced to hold off on their eminent decision to carry out an
aerial strike against Syria. This is the method to put Syria's
opposition back at the top of the agenda as far as US foreign
policy is concerned, and at the same time possibly give them a
boost in light of a series of setbacks in the last few months.
RT:State Department representative Marie
Harf has hailed the group's activity for building “an inclusive
and moderate institution” that represents the “interests and
needs of the Syrian people, rejects extremism, and works to
advance a negotiated political transition in Syria.” What do you
make of this?
AA: It totally contradicts most reports we've
received from inside Syria. The main forces that have been
fighting Bashar Assad have not been these purported liberal and
pseudo-democratic interests, but those of the radical Islamist
extremists who have been trained and who have been sent into the
country via Turkey as well as sections of Lebanon. So this
assessment of the current security, military, and political
situation inside Syria is totally divorced from reality and I
believe it is geared towards popular support for these opposition
groups within the US Congress, as well as among the public inside
this country.
RT:The move comes as the nation prepares
for elections, which are seen by many as a milestone. Could such
a move affect the outcome?
AA: I don’t think it can at all. These
opposition groups have demonstrated repeatedly at the ease of the
US and other western European countries that they are not
interested in a negotiated political settlement of the conflict
in Syria. At the same time, they do not have the capacity on the
ground militarily to effectively challenge the Syrian government,
so therefore they are in a quagmire since they have no electoral
strategy in regard to the upcoming election in Syria. This place
is even further away from the actual body of politics inside
Syria itself.
RT: The US announced that it is boosting only
non-lethal aid but did not elaborate. The SNC's office said that
sophisticated weapons supplies would be discussed. Why would the
US consider pouring even more arms into Syria right now?
AA: Because of the desperate situation of the
rebel organizations inside Syria, they have been given a
tremendous amount of offensive operations by the Syrian national
army and we believe that they are on the verge of complete
collapse. There have been splits within the armed ranks of the
rebel forces. And this of course has weakened their capacity to
even put up a good front, as relates to carrying out battles
against the Syrian government. Right now, even according to
official sources, the US has poured nearly $300 million into
these rebel groups, trying to build them up into a reputable
force to challenge the Syrian government. But I think it has not
been successful and I think the American people should realize
[the money is] not being well spent vis-a-vis the situation in
Syria and that the US State Department should put more emphasis,
along with the Russian government, on reaching some kind of
political settlement regarding the situation in Syria.
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.