Note to wife:
Russia has just starting bombing targets in Syria. This complicates an already tricky situation. Points to keep in mind (it’s a bit complex, I know):
- Bashara Hussein is the president of Syria. Once he had a working relationship with the U.S., but became a brutal dictator when rebels within his country tried to overthrow him. (This all began during the widespread “Arab Spring” uprisings five years ago.)
- Russia still supports Hussein, but the U.S. now wants him ousted.
- To help topple Hussein, the U.S. is providing military support for the anti-Hussein rebels.
- Hussein is also battling ISIS, the so-called Islamic State terrorist group that is against everyone.
- Officially, Russia has entered the conflict to protect Hussein by attacking ISIS.
- But the U.S. says Russia is also attacking rebel forces to further prop up Hussein and undermine U.S. efforts.
- All this creates a tinderbox, where U.S. and Russian military forces (intentionally or unintentionally) could wind up attacking each other, directly or through proxies.