Strategy, Ideology and the Close of the Syrian Crisis

STRATFOR  "It is said that when famed Austrian diplomat Klemens von Metternich heard of the death of the Turkish ambassador, he said, "I wonder what he meant by that?" True or not, serious or a joke, it points out a problem of diplomacy. In searching for the meaning behind every gesture, diplomats start to regard every action merely as a gesture. In the past month, the president of the United States treated the act of bombing Syria as a gesture intended to convey meaning rather than as a military action intended to achieve some specific end. This is the key to understanding the tale that unfolded over the past month."   Read more.

 

Could this be some sort of "gesture"? Biden to Speak at J Street Conference on Day Obama Meets with Bibi

"The Obama administration is sending its highest-ranking speaker yet to keynote J Street’s conference in Washington.

"The group has been branded a “pro-peace” alternative to pro-Israel groups such as AIPAC, the ADL and the American Jewish Committee. Alan Dershowitz once said “J Street has done more damage to Israel than any American organization.' ”