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The fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria demonstrates the weakening of the positions of its key allies, Russia and Iran, which failed to provide the necessary support. This was stated by US Deputy National Security Advisor John Feiner in an interview with CNN on Monday, 9 December.
The failure of the “joint project”
Feiner noted that the Assad regime was held together by close cooperation between Moscow and Tehran, but they were not prepared for the rapid advance of the rebels, who took control of numerous settlements in a little over a week and forced Assad to leave the country.
“It was a joint Russian-Iranian project, but both partners failed to provide vital support. This is a key reason why the regime is no longer in power,” said Feiner.
Weakening Iran’s influence
According to the official, the failure in Syria was another blow to Iran, which has already lost some of its influence in the Middle East. Among Tehran’s other failures, Finer named the weakening of the Hamas and Hezbollah groups, as well as unsuccessful attempts to attack Israel.
“This is clearly not the best time for Iran. This situation is the result of persistent efforts by the United States and our partners over the past year,” he said.
Russia is an unreliable ally
Feiner also added that the war in Ukraine has demonstrated to other countries Russia’s weakness as a security partner. He suggested that the events in Syria could be another signal to Moscow’s allies.
“This is not an accident or a mistake. This is evidence of serious systemic problems in the foreign policy of Russia and Iran,” he concluded.
The events in Syria and the consequences for the regional balance of power continue to attract the attention of the international community.
