By Aram Mirzaei for the Saker blog
On Wednesday June 17th, the so called Caesar Act came into effect. The Caesar Act, named after a supposed Syrian Army defector who smuggled 50 000 pictures portraying torture and human rights abuses in Syrian prisons, aims to bring down the Syrian government through “draconian sanctions”.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the bans “the beginning of what will be a sustained campaign of economic and political pressure to deny the Assad regime revenue.” The measures are meant to “prevent the Assad regime from securing a military victory” in the fight against foreign-backed terrorists, according to US Ambassador to the UN Kelly Craft.
Washington makes it pretty clear what this is all about, which I am thankful for since I cannot stand the rather crude lies about Washington’s “humanitarian concerns”. Having exhausted all other options, including violence, the US Caesar Act is Washington’s final move on Syria, as the Empire has resorted to starvation tactics. For Washington this has become a matter of pride only- if they can’t win in Syria, they will make sure not to let Russia and Iran win.
The starvation tactic used by Washington is pretty simple – they’re going to punish the Syrian people for standing by their government against Al-Qaeda terrorists. So what will this mean for all parties involved?
For Syria it means that prices of food, medicine, and other basics are spiralling out of reach in Syrian markets as the local currency collapses in value, shortly before new US sanctions came into force. After 9 years of foreign imposed war, more than 11 million people inside the country require humanitarian assistance, about half of whom are displaced from their original homes due to foreign-backed terrorism.
Washington knows this yet shamelessly keeps claiming that their sanctions are only targeting “regime figures”. Washington is hoping that a starved Syrian population will protest against Damascus and blame Assad for their misery, because Washington believes that the Syrian people are too ignorant to see who their killers really are.
Despite the misery it will result in, Washington will fail because Syria’s allies will never let it fall, not after having saved Syria after 9 years of violence and sacrifice. Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, vowed that Syria’s allies would not allow the Caesar Act to defeat Syria. Sayyed Nasrallah said in his speech: “America is resorting to the Caesar Act is evidence of Syria’s victory in the military war because it is its last weapon.” He continued: “Syria’s allies, who stood with it politically and militarily, will not abandon it in the face of the economic war and will not allow it to fall.”
He stressed that “the target of the Caesar law is the Syrian people and the return of the civil war,” pointing out that “he who provided blood and martyrs to keep Syria united and not subject to America and Israel will not allow the Caesar law to defeat Syria.”
This holds as true for the Islamic Republic of Iran as it does for Hezbollah. The Islamic Republic, being an experienced target of a “maximum pressure” campaign already couldn’t give less of a damn about these sanctions. Iran has already challenged US and EU sanctions on Syria by sending oil tankers to Damascus before. Also, Tehran recently showed strength when Iran broke through the US siege of Venezuela and sent five oil tankers to Caracas despite Washington’s threats. For Iran, Syria is non-negotiable, Tehran will do everything in its power to uphold the government in Damascus.
Russia and China won’t just stand idly by either. Moscow has just signed a major deal with Damascus to expand the Russian military airport and naval bases in the country. Moscow has invested heavily in Damascus both supplying expensive military hardware to the Syrian Armed Forces and deploying its own air force to combat Washington’s jihadists. It is not just the investments Moscow has made but also the number of Russian soldiers that have been martyred in Syria that makes me believe that Moscow would be mad to abandon Damascus at this stage, which I firmly believe it won’t.
Nor do I believe that China, which is now in a cold war like state with the US over the COVID-19 pandemic, will care for these sanctions. Why should they? The US is already waging an economic war on China, as the
US is seeking to prevent Beijing from doing business in the European market, and particularly to prevent Europe from embracing China’s 5G network and technology. Washington has also earlier sought to prevent Iraq from signing a $20 billion “oil for reconstruction” agreement with China as Beijing is expanding its business in the Middle East. Beijing, already involved in the planned reconstruction of Syria, will not care about Washington’s sanctions.
As Iran, Russia, China and Syria are solidifying and deepening their cooperation, I become more convinced that Syria will survive. Washington is unilaterally imposing sanctions on nations and populations, forcing their own allies to follow suit, even if it is harmful for the allies. Recently Washington threatened the UAE for daring to consider re-opening their embassy in Syria. It is clear that Washington is also forcing its vassals to seriously reconsider their allegiances before it is too late. As Washington’s cruelty keeps spiralling out of control, more countries in the region and eventually in the world will look eastwards for assistance. The Russia-China-Iran alliance has become very important for many countries in the region – countries like Iraq, Lebanon, Qatar and the UAE will look for help from Beijing and Moscow to compensate for the damages that Washington is causing to their economies.
We have seen the starvation tactic fail on countries like Iran and Venezuela before. The US Caesar act on Syria will not just fail, but it will further weaken Washington’s influence in the Levant.
The us is a ruled by a megalomaniac elite. These people are really messianic maniacs. They don t understand that when they make a move their targets will react in kind. They are not attacking a punching ball which can just take their blows.
The targeted countries will become more self sufficient and will increase their level of trust and cooperation. And at the end, the power and the influence the us has on these countries will just decrease even more to become irrelevent.
The us empire is dying and I have to say that the current elite is very good at accelerating the process.
@Laurent: “These people are really messianic maniacs”, true and their god is satan from the get go all Free Masons who self proclaimed want to correct GOD’s creation in order to pave the way for their master. It’s an evil entity (just like it’s judahic anchestor, and those’s Master’s the Egyptian Hyrophants) and will be destroyed without fail. It’s up to the american people in opposition to this entity to accelerate this process, for the later the worse it will become. The Fight for Truth is always a fight to get onto the path to God again, because only there is Life ! Anyone who has tasted the fountain of his waters cannot be fooled anymore by the magicians, sorcerers and twisters because God signed all his works, and his signature cannot be tempered with.
“The Fight for Truth is always a fight to get onto the path to God again”. To follow Pompeo and Pence. Religious messianic maniacs are just as bad as secular ones, maybe worse
This latest sanction effort is remarkable in a very bad way in that is highlights the extent of the ghoulish glee of the zionists in congress and in particular in the state dept on bring the civilian populations to their knees.
But as fatboy pompass says, the us is a force for good (sarc). The hypocrisy is astonishing but not at all new-that has been the hallmark of the empire’s policies for decades but it does seem to getting worse under the current regime.
In the long run, these mean and spiteful actions of the US may tend to make many countries more self-reliant and to encourage them to develop economic links, trade, and cultural exchange outside the networks controlled by the US and the west. But there are several preconditions that may or may not come to be satisfied.
1. For starters, the world needs to wake up to US realities and stop dreaming the American dream. There is a need to understand the realities behind “freedom”, “democracy”, “free enterprise” and other similar opiates and hallucinogens that many in the world have been swallowing over the past three generations. Perhaps the current chaos in the West will shatter some illusions about the “West”. If such an awakening does not happen we will continue to see Hong Kong Chinese begging for the West to come save them, East Europeans looking at America with the starry eyes of idiot-like children, and even many in Russia and Iran and elsewhere secretly wanting to become like the West. American soft power – its media, its Hollywood, its books, its music and, alas, its opiates and hallucinogens – is still substantial and formidable.
2. The Chinese need to man up a little. Nothing great has ever been achieved by any nation without struggle and fight. Building up a giant industrial base (no mean achievement, BTW) may come to nothing if the west knocks it down like a sand castle.
3. Russia needs to get its economic act together. I don’t pretend to know how. Its liberal classes need to put on their thinking caps.
4. Violations of international law and illegal sanctions by the US (which amount to blockades in reality) need to be treated like acts of war and countered. Silence may be golden but not when the jackboot is about to come down on your or your allies’ neck.
The Caeser sanctions are financial sanctions (US’ primary weapon). It means targeted individuals/ entities will lose access to bank accounts and international financial transactions.
It applies to:
-Assad, those loyal to him, and anyone who interacts with him in any way
-Syrian businesses
– Foreign businesses trading with Syria and/or helping with reconstruction.
Sanctions extend to wife and children and other family members. (They are now going after Asma’s family.)
Russia and China can only help if they accept to be cut off from Swift and other financial networks…the only country that can now get involved in Syria with zero impact to them is Iran as they are themselves under sanctions and have nothing to lose…
I may be wrong but I am quite sure that us sanctions apply only when the transactions are made using the dollar. These are us sanctions not UN sanctions. If I am not wrong bypassing those sanctions is possible you just don t use the dollar but another currency instead.
There is another important point to make. The sanctions the us is putting here and there are making the creation of a dollar free financial system indispensable. The us will lose power and influence, weakening the us empire. Again on the long run, the all sanctions policy of the us is a self defeating strategy. The sooner the better, because those sanctions are directly targeting civilians. From my point of view, all those sanctions are crimes against humanity.
Yes you are correct Laurent. The problem is that all commodities and most international trade is priced in USD. This makes a US clearing bank and, above all, OFAC ( Office of Foreign Asset Control) unavoidable.
Even if a secondary reserve currency were used Euros or Yen, both Japan and EU are client states and can easily be swayed.
I agree that US hegemony has given Russia and China every incentive to set up their own currency exchange and financial system.
And so on it goes. We continue to ignore the lessons of history. We bombed Viet Nam “back to the stone age” and it only made them more determined. Now we want to starve Syria and also Iran into submission.
“Throw everything at us. Throw everything you have. Throw the hydrogen bomb, and at the end of the engagement we will remain and you will be gone.”
– Ward Just’s ‘American Romantic’, the NV Captain in the jungle to his State Dept interlocutor.
At least the racist Zionist author of Caesar Act, Rep Engels, was defeated in his primary. Caesar Act was based off info that one of the combatants to war supplied, normally this kind of info is taken with a grain of salt. Not only is it cruel and inhumane, but shows that the authors believe the MSM Propaganda machine can overcome any rational analysis.
It‘s interesting and lies open on the table: with the Caesar act Washington „pulls“ China into the Levante …. there is no other outcome thinkable. China has the „surplus“ money and the engineering capacity ….. and a big brother behind who will, to a certain degree, organize the military backing of the Chinese venture. Russia. Russia will benefit economically as well but to a minor degree, instead she will follow her own interests, that are more of a strategically nature: neutralize the FUKUS states military might in the eastern Mediterranean – becoming the main stakeholder (besides China) in the Middle East.
Quite obvious – will take some time, maybe one or two decades (but I do not think so, it will happen much faster), but the US are already done in the Middle East – as for example Nazi Germany was done in February 1943 (Stalingrad).
Looking forward seeing it ….
Regards
Chris
“the US Caesar Act is Washington’s final move on Syria”
No. Nuclear annihilation of Damascus will be the final move.
If the US crosses that Rubicon, it has to realize that this time around Russia is not its ally and there are no aggrieved countries Syria has recently invaded..
And one additional thought: nearly seven years ago I wrote in a different political blog: „Syria will be the next challenge for Russia to master – and if it fails to succeed, Russia will have to definitively succumb (again) to the Western“
Russia mastered this challenge with „grandezza“ – Putin and Lavrov and last but not least Shoigu and Soleimani (Iran) played their cards thoughtfully, firm and with a comprehensive strategy.
Later on the Syria war will be seen as the beginning of the end of the empire. The first nail in the coffin. Accompanied by some additional painful defeats like the loss of Crimea, the resistance of Venezuela – among others.
The Caesar act is a sign of deep desperation, while strategy would be required for the empire.
But there is none….
Helpless, futile ….
Over & out.
Regards
Chris
” The first nail in the coffin.”
In any lateral interaction the choice of start and end points is always difficult – in the vernacular the question – which comes first the chicken or the egg ? may prove illuminating.
“Later on the Syria war will be seen as the beginning of the end of the empire”
Some would suggest that the process of transcendence of the expected attempted colour revolution by the opponents in Russia from 1991 onwards, a lateral process still continuing, a current example being changing of the constitution of the Russian Federation if agreed by 1st July 2020, may be seen as the beginning of the end of “The United States of America”.
Some others who agreed with Mr. Suslov that “The United States of America” had been at war with “The Soviet Union” since 1922, who also understood by the 1970’s that for various reasons “The Soviet Union” was unsustainable and that opponents would seek advantage in such a scenario – hence ” the expected attempted colour revolution” above may suggest a different beginning of the end of “The United States of America”.
Some are of the view that the beginning of the end of “The United States of America” was 4th July 1776.
” Putin and Lavrov and last but not least Shoigu and Soleimani (Iran) played their cards thoughtfully, firm and with a comprehensive strategy.”
All of the gentlemen you cite acknowledged/acknowledge that others who went before facilitated their opportunities to “play their cards thoughtfully, firm and with a comprehensive strategy” as did their not-being-Americaness but having the benefits of their own culture, including but not limited to addressing others with respect :
Mr. Putin and/or President Putin, Mr. Lavrov and/or Foreign Minister Lavrov, Mr. Shoigu and/or Minister of Defence Shoigu, and since he is now dead Mr. Soleimani. .
OlyaPola,
I will take on the lesson ….. and show you that I have learned a bit:
„….. and since he is now dead: Major General Soleimani.“
;-)
Regards
Chris
“Washington makes the final push for Regime Change in Syria – this too will fail”
This is an oxymoron facilitated by the attempt/achievement conflation.
This oxmoron is also facilitated by immersion of the author(s) in “Stop the….ness” by way of “final push”, “Regime change in” and “this too will fail”.
Some are of the view that “war” in myriad forms facilitate “The United States of America”, whilst others understand from implementing and testing various hypotheses/strategies, that such affords opportunities of transcending the coercive social relations that constitute “The United States of America” not restricted to the political geographical construct presently illustrated on maps entitled as “The United States of America”.
Evaluation is always a function of purpose and not all pursue the same purpose.
Some are of the view that “Winners write the history” thereby obfuscating that the “losers” remember a different history, which facilitates continuation of immersion in the winners/losers/winners/losers dance/trance.
Some others understand this and pursue lateral strategies of transcendence of opponents with the complicity of the opponents predicated on the opponents’ purpose and facility as members of the rubbing-sticks school of thermo-dynamics.
Turkey may be ready to sell its s400 to the us. It would be terrible. The us could study how the s400 works and improve its own air defense systems and at the same time improve its tactics to deal with those systems.
It could undermine russia s air defense network and of course the air defense netwotks of russia main allies. Should turkey do that it s hard to imagine the consequences for russia-turkey diplomatic relations and bilateral projects.
You can read the article on southfront.
It’s an export system for sale on the open market, anyone can potentially buy one , even almost new, second hand. If the Russians didn’t game that in……………….yikes.
The information has been confirmed by TASS.
On the article we can learn this:
Turkey cannot transfer or re-export Russian S-400 missile defense systems to third countries without Russia’s consent, the press service of Russia’s Federal Service for Military Technical Cooperation told TASS on Tuesday.
“To export military products, a buyer of our weapons must present an end-user declaration to the Russian side. That is why transfer or re-export of such products to third countries is impossible without an official permit from the Russian side,” it stressed.
The link:
https://tass.com/defense/1173405
Errrr..ahem…Turkey and USA still both sending their convoys of occupation into Idlib and northeast Syria via Iraq…….SDF seems to be entrenching its presence for independance more solidly in north east too…..problems in Daraa…with turkish backed forces….etc etc.
Exactly, this clusterf*ck is far from over. We’ve been hearing this talk for years now.
Yup…tripartate meeting today Iran Russia Turkey again declaring illegal presence to move out ..Turkey wants territorial integrity and peace lasting solution etc in Syria(but presumably on its own terms for its own benefit and profit and seems to be merging its supporting militants into self contained democratic occupation units…. and there seems to have been a meeting( not reported) about a week ago between Turkey and Russia where 3 points of previous agreement necessary have not been implemented by Turkey?).statements Syria must have support to get rid of terrorists and state unity…..seems to be some increased SAA troop movements in Idlib region…..etc etc…meanwhile…. lots of suffering …
This should be a crucial step closer to Russia China and Friends banning the Bretton Woods architecture altogether. Why continue getting robbed and bullied? Just set up your own system, let the USAns flounder trying to contain their poodles and be done with it?
https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-syria-on-july-1-2020-map-update/
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