Russia's President Vladimir Putin (C) attends a conference at the main operation centre of the Russian armed forces, with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu (L) and armed forces Chief-of-Staff Valery Gerasimov (R) in Moscow, June 6, 2013. Credit: Reuters/Michael Klimentyev/RIA Novosti/Kremlin
Shane Harris, Nancy A. Youssef, & Michael Weiss, Daily Beast: Putin ‘Seducing’ Iraq’s Tribes
“Russia is serious in fighting terrorism,” one sheikh tells The Daily Beast, ”unlike the U.S.”
BAGHDAD, Iraq — In the last Iraq war, the U.S. military helped beat ISIS’ predecessors with the help of the Sunni tribes. Now, Russia is trying to take a page from the old American playbook, and forge its own tribal alliances.
“Russia is serious in fighting terrorism and wants to finish the war as soon as possible, unlike the U.S.,” Faisal al-Asafi, a Sunni sheikh in Iraq’s Anbar province who opposes ISIS, told The Daily Beast. “Russia has already started bombing the transmission lines of ISIS while the U.S. is watching ISIS fighters moving freely from Syria to Anbar.”
Two U.S. officials told The Daily Beast that they are seeing early signs of this Russian outreach to Sunni tribal leaders in Iraq, aimed at bolstering the minority sect’s efforts to combat ISIS militants embedded within Sunni communities.
WNU Editor: Russia is looking for allies in its war in Syria .... it makes sense to reach out to the Sunni Arab tribes in western Iraq.
3 comments:
I don't like Islam. I don't like the Shia-Sunni split.
But at least someone for whatever reason wants to partner with the Anbar tribes and stick with them.
It is a hell of a deal where a presidential election can reverse course 180 degrees.
Sunni tribal leaders stuck with us in Iraq. The leader got assassinated and his brother stepped up. The brother got assassinated and a cousin stepped up. The stood up in front of Al Qaeda and we elected Barack.
Nuff said.
I don't like Islam. I don't like the Shia-Sunni split.
But at least someone for whatever reason wants to partner with the Anbar tribes and stick with them.
It is a hell of a deal where a presidential election can reverse course 180 degrees.
Sunni tribal leaders stuck with us in Iraq. The leader got assassinated and his brother stepped up. The brother got assassinated and a cousin stepped up. The stood up in front of Al Qaeda and we elected Barack.
Nuff said.
The U.S. Military paid the Son's of Iraq, $800,000 a day not to attack them.
http://www.antiwar.com/roberts/?articleid=12385
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