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US-Russia Diplomacy Could Be Casualty of Attack on Syria

A US attack on Syria may undermine the prospects for a Geneva II peace conference and worsen already strained ties between Washington and Moscow.
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speak during a joint news conference after their meeting in Moscow, May 7, 2013. The U.S. secretary of state sought Russian help in ending Syria's civil war on Tuesday, telling President Vladimir Putin in Moscow that common interest in a stable Middle East could bridge divisions among the big powers. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin (RUSSIA - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTXZE2I
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When four years ago Barack Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, he dedicated his laureate speech to the subject of just and unjust wars. Apparently, there are cases when the war is not just necessary, but inevitable. He must have had a second sight. As soon as he finished his “unjust” war in Iraq, he was forced to “justly” fight in Libya. Today, they haven’t left Afghanistan, yet nobody knows if their sense of justice might as well take them to the Syrian front. Oh, global leadership is a heavy burden. There is a constant need for proof of the qualities of a super-power, otherwise the rest of the flock may get out of control ...

Events in Syria and in the surrounding lands automatically bring to mind all previous incidents of international interventions since the 1990s. The mysterious use of toxic substances immediately transforms into casus belli, including the involvement of UN inspectors, yet in reality nobody could care less about their conclusions because the powers that be already know who is to blame. And the heartbreaking scenes of children dying from suffocation would get anybody onboard. And the “coalition of the volunteers” appears ready to participate in retaliation against the malicious regime.

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