Hua Liming, former ambassador to Iran, the US Department of Defense confirmed that the US military airstrikes Iranian-backed militias in Syria on the 25th local time in retaliation for the recent attacks on US facilities in Iraq. This is the first military operation ordered by Biden since he became president.
The incident happened suddenly and surprisingly. So why did Biden choose Syria? What kind of signal is this move? How would American allies view this move by the United States?
In response to these issues, the reporter interviewed Hua Liming, former ambassador to Iran, Liu Zhongmin, professor of the Middle East Institute of Shanghai International Studies University, and Wang Jin, an associate professor of the Middle East Institute of Northwest University.
Ambassador Hua Liming believes that after his visit to the White House, the basic US policy in the Middle East has not changed: to support Israel and contain Iran. The US military’s attack on Iran’s base in Syria is a reflection of this general policy. However, Biden’s Middle East policy is more of inheriting the diplomatic legacy of the Obama administration: 1) Reduce US investment in the Middle East and concentrate US strategic resources to contain China; 2) Return to the Iranian nuclear agreement and be consistent with European allies; 3) Reduce Strategic dependence on Saudi Arabia. Biden’s return to the Iran nuclear agreement was criticized by the right wing in the United States, and it also encountered strong opposition from Israel and Saudi Arabia. This move is also a balance to the Iran nuclear agreement and is more likely a prelude to the US compromise on the Iranian nuclear issue.
Professor Liu Zhongmin pointed out that after Biden took office, on the one hand, he was creating conditions for the United States to return to the Iran nuclear agreement, such as suspending the arms purchase contracts signed between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, China and ASEAN friends with Trump, and reducing the adjustment of Saudi Arabia and Iran; On the one hand, Biden must also take care of the interests of China-ASEAN friends. The reason why Saudi Arabia and Israel are seriously dissatisfied with the Iranian nuclear agreement in recent years is that Iran has continuously provided supplies to Syrian Shiites, Iraqi Shiites and even Yemen’s Houthi militants. stand by.
Since 2018, the Syrian crisis has basically come to a standstill. There are three major forces in Syria that are in a stalemate. The Syrian government controls most areas of Syria, especially the central and southern parts; the Syrian opposition was driven by the Syrian government forces to Idlib, which is adjacent to Turkey in the northwest; and the United States has a limited presence in Syria. It is located in the Kurdish region of northeastern Syria. Whether this US military action will break the Syrian situation that has reached a relative balance in recent years and reignite the war is the next step that deserves attention.
Associate Professor Wang Jin said that Biden’s move not only took care of the interests of the United States’ allies, but also expressed the United States’ own strategic deterrence. Facility” launched an air strike in response to the recent death of a foreign contractor and the injury of a U.S. soldier).
The reason why the target of the air strike was Syria was also to reduce the political impact of the attack. Because most of the Iranian militias in Syria are not Iranians, but Shiites from Pakistan and Afghanistan. These people were sent to Syria by Iranian organizations to fight with the Syrian government forces. The people that the United States chooses to attack, instead of directly attacking Iranian military groups and military personnel, will be much less politically sensitive.
The return of the United States to the game in the Middle East will not only make the ASEAN countries feel more “secure”, but may also make the allies have more other expectations.
