# Syria: Putin succeeds where Obama failed

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/syria-putin-succeeds-where-obama-failed/775884>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [December 30, 2016, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/syria-putin-succeeds-where-obama-failed/775884 "2016-12-30T00:49:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 26

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**Author:** ![ganthet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de0a6/32.png) [@ganthet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ganthet)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2016, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/syria-putin-succeeds-where-obama-failed/775884/26 "2016-12-30T04:53:12Z")

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> [@aldiboronti](#):
>
> Either one thing or the other. Support the rebels with air power to quickly topple Assad before Russia got involved or step away completely and tell the rebels they’re on their own. If either step had been taken decisively and firmly it would have had a significant impact. The very worse thing the US could do was offer half-hearted support while at the same time holding out hope that firmer action could be coming. The result was a prolonging of the war and a lesson for the Arabs that if you need a reliable ally then you look towards Russia.

Weren’t you same person who also said:

> [@End game in Aleppo](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/end-game-in-aleppo/773313/1):
>
> Despite the concerted efforts of the Syrian rebels and their Islamic extremist allies, supported by short-sighted Western powers (have they forgotten Libya?), the Syrian government is finally beginning to assert control over the country.

and

> [@End game in Aleppo](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/end-game-in-aleppo/773313/50):
>
> The West did their utmost to turn Syria into another Libya, their last triumph of foreign policy. But Assad wasn’t Gaddafi, despite all the jibes and sneers of a few years back that he was finished and on the way out. He wasn’t because irrespective of the posts above he did have the support of a substantial number of Syrians and there is no way he could have survived without it.

So, the West did their utmost in Syria but it was half-hearted? The U.S. should have tried to quickly topple Assad, but it would have been short-sighted to do so because we would have already forgotten about Libya?

Air power alone was not going to topple Assad in the early days (with ground forces still coalescing and no real organization) and is not capable of toppling Assad now (even if the Russians were removed). Air power did not remove Saddam and air power was only effective in Libya because there were significant ground forces ready and able to take advantage of strikes on Qaddafi’s forces to regain the momentum and attack.

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