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Specific Problem With Current Foreign Policy
Specific Problem With Current Foreign Policy
11-15-2015
Russian American Relations
Richard Farkas
Policy Proposal
Specific Problem with Current Foreign Policy:
Russia is currently embroiled in the Syrian War, and the events of the last few
days have made it abundantly clear that the conflict is going to escalate in its severity
drastically. As it stands, Russia has been involved in the conflict through air strikes and
providing armaments and training to the Assad led government in Syria. This support of
Assad has put them in opposition with the United States. The United States, along with
France, Turkey, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, support the rebel
groups that oppose the traditional Syrian government. The conflict is messy and tangled,
but Russias focus has been primarily on rebel locations. ISIS is the main threat here, and
the Russians need to recalibrate their focus, especially considering France has begun to
launch airstrikes in Raqqa, a city in Syria that is under ISISs control, and is poised to
ramp up its involvement against ISIS further than that.
The major issue with Russias involvement in Syria has been its lack of
coordination with the members of Europe and the United States, which has resulted in an
increase in tensions. They have very different visions for the future of Syria, but ISIS
stands as the preeminent threat to nearly every actor in this conflict. This lack of
coordination has not only muddied the conflict, which has allowed ISIS to thrive. It has
also served to make the relationship between the United States and Russia even more
fractious. It is a delicate situation, and Russia must partner their efforts with other
influential western and Arab countries to confer on a workable plan of action to combat
the ISIS threat, which is currently the largest threat to regional, domestic, and global
security in the world.
World situation that creates the opportunity for change:
The attacks Friday in Paris have markedly changed the global perception of the
conflict and have immediately raised the stakes for all parties involved. First and
foremost, it provides, similar to the 9/11 attacks, a common threat for a substantial
amount of countries. Now, more than ever, the global community is united in opposition
to a singular threat. France has now engaged ISIS with airstrikes and has sent their only
aircraft carrier to the region, which served to triple their military strength there. Francois
Hollande, the French President, declared the attacks by ISIS as an act of war and then
evoked a mutual defense clause in the Lisbon Treaty, which created the European
Union (Labb), which suggests that they expect their allies in the European Union to join
in the fight. The world is now definitively united in opposition to ISIS, and the conflict is
going to increase in severity. Russia has a chance to help create a truly multilateral
solution to issues in the Middle East. The last decade was dominated by U.S. presence in
the region, and the reverberattions from their actions have been felt all over the world.
Reason for Putin to be interested:
This is an opportunity for Russia to assert itself in the global stage. Russias
involvement in Syria has allowed Putins support to increase to record highs (Bloomberg)
and public opinion all over the world is now craving action against ISIS. It is an
opportunity, once again, for a reset in relations. This tragedy is a chance for Russia to
become closer with the European Union, as all parties recognize that attacks similar to
those that just occurred could happen in any country in the world. Russia was just subject
to a smaller scale terrorist attack by ISIS; a major one in Moscow is within the realm of
possibility. This is a rare opportunity. France is the wronged nation, not the United States,
so it appears that they will attempt to set the agenda for now in the Syrian conflict. They
have already significantly increased their military commitment, and it appears that it is
just the beginning. The global community, for the most part, will likely support their
actions. This is a chance for common ground to be found with the West, where the United
States will not be leading the charge.
It is a chance for a truly multilateral coalition. It is a chance to truly form a major
role in deciding the course global affairs after almost two decades of relative passivity, it
will paint them as the good guys in the conflict, which will help the world forget about
Crimea, and it will increase ties with other countries, which will hopefully result in the
lessening of the economic sanctions. As long as the Russians do not commit a substantial
amount of ground troops and the effort is truly multilateral, this is a golden opportunity
for both Putin and Lavrov.
Concrete details for new foreign policy:
Russias role is to make the first step. Putin must reach out to France and partner
with them. They are receptive. Then offer overtures to the United States and get on the
same page with all of the major foreign actors in the conflict. Then, Putin must coordinate
with the United States and France to get the major leaders of the Syrian government and
the rebel groups to the table. The conflict is extremely messy and there are a vast amount
of different factions, so getting everyone to the table will be difficult. However, Lavrov
has already prepared a list of 38 opposition leaders, who could be brought into the
Disadvantages
Works Cited
Anishchuk, Alexei. "Putin Gains Record Support Among Russians Over Syria, Poll
Shows." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, 22 Oct. 2015. Web. 17 Nov. 2015.
Balmer, Chine Labb and Crispian. "'France Is at War': Hollande Seeks to Unite France,
US, and Russia into Single Anti-ISIS Coalition." Business Insider. Business Insider,
Inc, 16 Nov. 2015. Web. 17 Nov. 2015.
Landay, Jonathan. "Russia's Syria Force Grows to 4,000, U.S. Officials Say." Reuters.
Thomson Reuters, 04 Nov. 2015. Web. 17 Nov. 2015.
Mirzayan, Gevorg. "The Most Important Russian Foreign Policy Events of the Week."
Russia DIrect. N.p., 10 Nov. 2015. Web.