Epstein Secrets

ay not be especially reassuring. "The connections between the opposition and the Free Syrian Army are still tenuous, but they're getting better," a State Department official told McClatchy. "If we can get Assad and his cronies out, that will at least create an atmosphere to have a dialogue. That can't happen no

ns that abut it suggest a process of ethnic cleansing to prepare the way. An Alawite coastal ministate that folds in the port cities of Latakia and Tartus, home to the Russian navy's key warmwater port, may not be viable in the long run, but that doesn't mean the regime's core won't try for one. Even

n't exercise EFTA00717212 his capacity to significantly damage Western interests in the Middle East if he so chooses. Josh Cohen is a former US. State Department official who was involved in managing economic reform projects in the former Soviet Union. NYT The Unlikely Road to War oR ger Cohen March 17,

ent Mediterranean naval task force, part of Putin's project of reinvigorating the Russian military and projecting power globally. Without access to Tartus, Russian ships and submarines would have nowhere in the eastern Mediterranean to refuel. Russia also has a deep fear of Islamic—and specifically Su

red in US President Barack Obama recent speech at the State Department when he referred to the "promise of the future."

come of negotiations, rather than a precondition. State Department officials are skeptical, but they should test the

possible, for the opposition to topple him. At the UN and elsewhere, Syria enjoys the protection of Russia -- perhaps concerned for its naval base at Tartus. The Russian view is that the Syrian crisis poses no threat to international peace and HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_030169 --- PAGE BREAK --- 15 security. China