Till when will Syria deceive the Arabs over Lebanon, Palestine ?

 

Riyadh, Cairo, Amman, and Sanaa are faced with the same predicament – the necessity of solving the Lebanese crisis in line with the Arab vision and initiative. As for Damascus and Tehran, they find themselves in a different trench, that of trickery and defiance.

 

A moderate camp opposes a defiant camp. Other Arab countries adopt different stances on Arab causes and open crises.   

 

There are conflicts, or disagreements, over bridging an Arab gap and allowing a small Arab country its right to sovereignty and decision on its own territory. A small country called Lebanon, which is a member of the Arab League. In public, in front of cameras, Arabs agree on “consensus” solutions, then behind closed doors, an Arab country would cut short the solution initiative and unabashedly brush it aside. 

 

The repercussions of Arab crises are felt everywhere. Wounds are hollow, and solutions are uncertain, if not stagnant.

 

Last Thursday, colleague Ziad AlDariss concluded his article in Al Hayat with a nice question: Will the “expected” Lebanese president come to light, after Hezbollah, Syria, and Iran made him disappear in the “crypt” of controversy during the past months, or will we keep on shrugging our shoulders in wonder about the “awaited president,” hoping he will appear soon?

 

Arabs were expecting from the Syrian president a “sudden” conclusive answer that would cancel all previous “open” maneuvers, for history to usher in a new Arab era from the heart of Damascus. But solutions effortlessly came out gloomy.

 

The question may be expanded to encompass other causes: Till when will Syria toy with Arabism and national causes, ruin solutions in Lebanon, and deepen schism among Palestinians?

 

Till when will Syria put the spoke in the wheels of every Arab solution? When will it get over its obstinacy? When will it stop controlling Arab solutions and dragging them to an Arabism over which dead corpse it is still dancing? Doesn”t it have a “Damascene” solution to ease distress and anguish?

 

Why does it refuse to open a new page with its Lebanese counterpart, especially as they both complement each other? Why does it refuse to open an embassy in Beirut that would help “ease” the tensions prevailing in the neighboring country? 
 
Did Syria forget the decisive Arab stance when Turkey threatened to invade its territory in the late nineties? Has a distant country become the closest ally and friend of Syria, while the neighboring country turned into a resentful foe and opponent?

 

The Syrian political discourse is “contradictory.” Evidence to this effect abounds, notably the recent rally behind the Arab initiative on Lebanon, as well as Syria”s disinterest in mediating a reconciliation among Palestinians even though it hosts Hamas leaders.

 

The Syrian alliance with Iran is not novel. It goes back to the 1980s. At that time, President Hafez Assad was keen to maintain the balance between this alliance and Syria”s role in the Arab world, a balance that has been lost today.

 

Syria”s political and strategic decisions are no longer taken in Damascus, but in Tehran. Syria has become the supporter of a regional plan from which Arabs are excluded. It is a plan that caters for Iran”s ambitions and expanding influence in the region more than it observes Arabs” rights and interests.

 

Why did Syria wonder about the absence of half of the Arab leaders at the summit? Why did the disheartened Arab capitals reduce the level of their representation?
 
If Damascus is waiting to hear congratulations on a failed summit from those who blindly flatter it, then congratulations!