West pursues incoherent policy in Syria: Analyst

A political analyst says the West is pushing ahead with ‘a bizarre and incoherent policy’ in Syria which runs counter to the United States’ interests.

James Jatras, a former US Senate foreign policy analyst from Washington D.C., told Press TV in an exclusive interview on Sunday while commenting on a recent statement by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov about the US militarism in the Middle.

“He said that the West is pursuing its own interests. I would say we are pursuing our policy, but our policy which – I think – is actually contrary to our interests,” Jatras stated, referring to the Russian foreign minister.

The analyst also noted that Russia was right in its belief that the West was strengthening the terrorist groups by opposing the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The United States has extended its air operations that started in Iraq last month to Syria, with the support of Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

“I think what is really bizarre about the Obama administration policy is that, who are our partners in pursuing strikes on ISIL today? Our partners are Saudis, the Qataris and others who helped build the ISIL in the first place. We still have to manage to get even Turkey on board which has been ISIL’s top supporter,” Jatras noted.

Turkey and Arab monarchies of Persian Gulf are accused of providing military and financial support for the ISIL terrorists. Since the start of the crisis in Syria in 2011, Turkey has reportedly allowed its borders to be used as a conduit for aid, weapons and militants heading into Syria.

Turkey and Jordan have also been the main entry point for foreign militants who seek to join the ISIL in Iraq and Syria.