Vocal Voices

The meeting of the G7 countries failed to approve sanctions on Russia and Syria over last week's gas attack in Syria. That is a bit surprising given the immediate and continuing condemnation and finger pointing by most of those same countries.

Then came Russia's claim that it has intelligence pointing to more chemical attacks being planned by Syrian rebels in order to do further harm to the Assad regime and calling for an independent official UN investigation to be carried out into the last attack.

It looks as thought the West has blinked first and it will be interesting to see if a UN investigation ever gets underway.

Not that surprising, I fear. Yes, we did blink first. The Europeans are far too spineless to challenge the Russian Bear, and Obama (and the UK parliament) set a very dangerous precedent over the first major chemical attack.

Putin's latest claim about the rebels planning chemical attacks is risible, but you wouldn't expect anything less from the proponents of fake news.

You don't ask for an official UN investigation if you have something to hide.

Turn it around, if you were winning and the rebels faked a chemical attack by you, how would you respond?

I have never believed this from the very beginning because Russian and Assad have absolutely nothing to gain from using them and especially using them against civilians.

The rebels, however, if they can turn the US and the EU against Russia and Assad, have won and chaos will reign, just as it has in Libya.

The reason the west backed down? Russia invoked an official UN enquiry. If Russia is to blame they veto the UN, they don't ask for an enquiry.

The Russians have played a trump card. It could well be a bluff, but what can the West do?

If it denies the UN investigation it leaves itself open to the accusation that the attack was not as it claimed. If it allows it and the result is inconclusive, as the Russians claim, what then?

Whatever way you look at it, it is a damned good move by the Russians.

Not only that but if the UN does investigate and the results are conclusive and against the rebels, then Trump is in a really bad light after his missile attacks.

The west are going great guns. Condemn Assad in the UN then get the UN to investigate the claims.

Russia Veto's. Well I never...

It is like the EU and the US are deliberately trying to push Russia to confrontation. Very comforting. Also looking quite orchestrated, if you take a step back and look at it.

Russia apparently threw the veto because the resolution for an investigation also contained a motion condemning Syria and Assad for the attack. This, it says, pre-judges any investigation, which is fair enough.

Was the second motion put there to force Russia into a veto?

If it had not been there would Russia have simply abstained?

It is all very muddy water indeed.