In the EDMONTON JOURNAL
THERE WAS LITTLE COMMON GROUND BETWEEN BARACK OBAMA AND VLADIMIR PUTIN ON MONDAY. THE FORMER WANTS REGIME CHANGE IN SYRIA. THE LATTER CONSIDERS THAT A BIG MISTAKE.
U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin traded barbs Monday in back-toback speeches before the United Nations General Assembly.
The speeches highlighted the strained relations between the two nations and stark differences in their approaches to resolving the Syrian conflict. Obama said he was willing to work with anyone but insisted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad must eventually go. Putin, however, maintained the world needs to work with him.
There is no desire to return to the Cold War, but America cannot stand by when the sovereignty of a nation is “flagrantly violated,” Obama said, referring to Russia’s annexation of Crimea and aggression in eastern Ukraine.
Putin, without explicitly mentioning the U.S., accused Washington of trying to impose its will on others and fostering Middle East violence through the export of democratic revolutions.
Here are the leaders in their own words. “The United States is prepared to work with any nation, including Russia and Iran, to resolve the conflict. But we must recognize that there cannot be, after so much bloodshed, so much carnage, a return to the prewar status quo.”
“Yes, realism dictates that compromise will be required to end the fighting and ultimately stamp out ISIL. But realism also requires a managed transition away from Assad and to a new leader, and an inclusive government that recognizes there must be an end to this chaos so that the Syrian people can begin to rebuild.” “We think it is an enormous mistake to refuse to cooperate with the Syrian government and its armed forces, who are valiantly fighting terrorism face-to-face. We should finally acknowledge that no one but President Assad’s armed forces and Kurd militia are truly fighting the Islamic State and other terrorist organizations in Syria.”
“We must join efforts to address the problems that all of us are facing on the basis of international law, and create a genuinely broad international coalition against terrorism. Similar to the anti-Hitler coalition, it could unite a broad range of forces that are willing to resolutely resist those who just like the Nazis sow evil and hatred of humankind.”