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Moral Choice Leads to Political Solution In Syria

The moral choice for Turkey should be to support a political solution to end the war in Syria as soon as possible, writes Tulin Daloglu.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry looks towards Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov before the start of the NATO- Russia Council meeting at NATO headquarters in Brussels April 23, 2013. REUTERS/Evan Vucci/Pool (BELGIUM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXYWOB

Not that morality and national interests are contradictory and mutually exclusive, but morality is never prioritized over national interests in affairs of state. While it is understandable that the Syrian National Coalition (SNC) is expressing full disappointment for a lack of a firm decision even after the meeting of NATO foreign ministers on April 23, the oppositions' unwavering stand in refusing to sit at the negotiation table with the Assad regime may also be found morally questionable. The issue is not how murderous Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is. The world is well aware of what he is capable of doing to his own people. The issue is that no one with a sound mind can actually guarantee that a foreign military intervention in Syria will resolve the crisis and end the bloodshed. The gravity of the crisis is way more complicated than a black-and-white approach in appealing for a foreign military intervention. 

It is about time for the SNC to comprehend that their priorities do not correspond to the international community’s perception of where their interests lie. And for serious thinkers, it must also be a given that this is not the time to blame outsiders, but to get real in thinking how to exit from this crisis without losing more lives. When Moaz al-Khatib, leader of the SNC, addressed the Arab League members, he claimed more than 100,000 Syrians were killed. If the priority is to work for the moral upper hand and focus on saving lives, considering a diplomatic and political deal under the auspices of the United States and Russia may not be the world’s worst bet, but for the SNC that seems to be the case. 

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