Shocking development, the UK has grown a back bone and found the courage to say no to the us gov on the proposed Syria bombing! :icon_bigg " BREAKING: British Parliament Vote on Bombing #Syria: Yes 272 NO 285. No "Coalition of the Willing" for US this time"
To be honest, the Syrian rebels aren't any better than Assad. It doesn't really matter which side we bomb, somebody very bad will be in control of the country. We don't need to get involved in that shit. Yes, Assad uses chemical weapons. While horrific, they are similar in results to fire bombings and other tactics that are generally considered kosher, and they leave something to be desired as a tactical weapon. They aren't the uber destructive WMDs they get made out to be.
Well the rebels have links to Islamist groups like Al Quaeda and are no better than Assad. Its a Sunni vs Shia war after all. The UK has no right to get involved in this, humanitarian I am 100% behind since kids are dying but no military involvement. The parliament saved the UK from another potential Iraq
I'm afraid I would have been cynical about this no matter the result. Fucked whether they said yes or no. I suspect someone would just take his place.
Unfortunately in this case, the UK's relevance on the world stage these days is fairly limited. If Obama wants a war in Syria he will get one. This is a more of a throwback to the Cold War, a proxy war between the United States and Russia, with Putin's access to ports on the Mediterranean Sea at stake. Syria is one of the last remaining holdouts against total U.S. imperial dominance of the Middle East. When Syria falls, that leaves only the big prize of Iran to focus on. But already that was a very close vote. In any event it is likely that some Gulf of Tonkin-style event will be engineered to get the UK and other Western nations on board, as well as to overcome popular opposition to intervention in Syria within the US. Already we are seeing this with development of the "chemical weapons" narrative. Many times the power elites have lost their first votes in the Kabuki theatre of democracy, but ultimately they never take no for an answer.
The tiny Republic of Cyprus is part of the EU and aligned with the West. The UK has just sent RAF fighter jets to Cyprus allegedly as a defensive measure against Assad. (Assad is struggling to keep the lid on a civil war engulfing Syria itself, do they really think Assad is planning to attack Cyprus?) Syria crisis: British jets head for Cyprus as US and Russia send ships to region - World Politics - World - The Independent Turkey is also a US-aligned state and has been one of the most vocal opponents of Assad's regime.
Will they rule the country after his fall? I thought this was about democracy in the first place? What's the point of all of this, then?