May 28th may be the date that marks the beginning of a proxy war being fought primarily by Israel against Syria. On that date Russian officials announced they would be supplying the Syrian government with S-300’s, an uber-advanced anti-aircraft targeting system. Prior to this date, the European Union had ended a prior arms embargo against the Syrian rebel forces opening the door for arms sales to the group that is fighting against Syrian President Assad’s regime.
As neither Assad’s nor the Syrian rebels are sympathetic to Israel, Moshe Ya’alon, the man in charge of Israel’s Defense Department has announced Israel’s plan to bomb any delivered S-300’s that make it into Syria. Both sides in the conflict in Syria are adamantly opposed to and seek the destruction of the nation of Israel. Anti-aircraft technology could be used from Syria to penetrate Israeli airspace and target civilians inside the country.
This conflict sets up a proxy war with the United States wanting to back both Israel and the Syrian rebels against the will of Russia. Putin has questioned the intelligence of President Obama in siding with a group of radicals who cannibalistically eat the entrails of their enemies. The conflict however sets up the United States as having to side with Israel at the same time as they are siding with the group that Israel has sworn to bomb if those S-300’s are delivered. It will be a full on proxy war with the United States versus Russia playing out when Israel defends themselves against the Syrian government and rebels and as such attacks an ally of Russia.
The truth is that in this war, there is no winning side. Cheap proxy wars end up being as costly if not more costly than wars fought between two neighboring nations. Russia argues that this agreement to equip the Syrian government with lethal weapons would help to stabilize the region. The EU however has indicated a desire to help the rebels known as the FSA or the Free Syrian Army by supplying them with weaponry. This will pit Europe and the United States against the Syrian Government and Russia with Israel playing a central role in the conflict.
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