Peace Action Statement on Sending U.S. Ground Troops into Syria
Peace Action West Executive Director Jon Rainwater has made this statement on today’s announcement:
[1]: For cost numbers and other metrics on the military campaign see U.S. Central Command’s website on “Operation Inherent Resolve”: http://www.defense.gov/News/Special-Reports/0814_Inherent-ResolveThe announcement today that the President is sending U.S. ground troops to Syria was as predictable as it is disappointing. We should know by now that the first law of military conflicts is escalation. That’s why sending these troops into battle should trouble all Americans. With the “no boots on the ground” promise broken there’s no telling how many U.S. troops will ultimately be sent to Iraq and Syria.
Over a year into the U.S.-led bombing campaign what have we accomplished? The United States has spent over $4.75 billion on over 6059 airstrikes in Iraq and Syria.[1] Watching the tragic refugee crisis spreading, we know that more bombing isn’t making the Syrian people any safer. And as the United States drops thousands of bombs, angering thousands of people in two Middle Eastern nations, it’s not making the American people any safer either.
On the contrary, a U.S. led attack in Syria, with its inevitable civilian casualties, strengthens recruitment for ISIS. Adding U.S. ground troops is just throwing gasoline on the fire. Instead, we need sustained diplomacy to end the Syrian civil war and we need to significantly increase humanitarian aid for the victims of the conflict.
It is unfortunate that diplomatic solutions were not tried instead. I think former President Carter offered to help broker a peaceful solution between the countries involved. Hopefully some day we will learn these wars have achieved very little except to paint a target on this country while leaving a border unprotected. Americans have always assumed if we helped group A in a war group A is the only group from country xyz that is coming thru the border. The enormous gang problem in this country proves otherwise. Some of these groups can be traced directly to countries where we fought wars on drugs and terrorism. No one understands or has even read the UN Declaration of Human Rights and see it as a One World Government. The debt from this conflict has helped raise our debt to an amount that will probably cause the country to collapse. A depression may be the result.
Peace Acti