West pushing Syria toward total doom

The tragedy is that the Western media, with exceptions, refuse to see the game being played out in the Middle East on the pretext of protecting human rights and spreading democracy. They parrot the pet lines of Western politicians, think tanks with vested interests and gullible scholars. That most of the media outlets are owned or run by large corporations also plays a key role in journalists' views and viewpoints.

For the West, punishing Syria is like punishing Iran in proxy. The Western countries have been seeking an excuse to strike at Iran because it has refused to bow to their demands, especially on its nuclear program, which it claims to be for civilian purposes. In a way, an attack on Syria by the US-led West would also be a proxy attack on Russia and China, because the two countries have been asking the Western countries to resolve the Syrian conflict politically through negotiations.

It is still disputable whether the Syrian government forces or the rebels carried out the "chemical attack" in a Damascus neighborhood on Aug 21. Even the UN inspectors who studied the site of the chemical attack have not yet reached a conclusion on which side is to blame for the attack. But that has not stopped the West from preparing to go on the offensive against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The mindless invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan should have made the West wary of indulging in another bloody war game. Perhaps it has, for British Prime Minister David Cameron said he is not 100 percent certain of intelligence reports that suggest Assad might have ordered the chemical attack. But paradoxically he is one of the Western leaders most eager to see action against the Syrian government.

The British Parliament has rejected his plea to launch an attack, though. With Russia and China opposed to military action against Assad, we hope Syria doesn't turn into the Korea and Vietnam of the 21st century. But then the Nobel Peace Prize winning president of the United States has to prove a point to justify his presidency, irrespective of the consequences, even though he claims to have a sound knowledge of history and what is good for humankind.

The author is a senior editor with China Daily.

E-mail: oprana@chinadaily.com.cn