Lebanon, Gaza, and the Syrian-Iranian Axis

[AdmiralAdama]

There are four different propositions and a double negative in that question, what exactly are you saying?

Thanks for trying to clean up my grammar. I appreciate it.

My question is whether the respondent believes in the existance of a Syrian-Iranian alliance? If so, why the talk about "neocon buzzwords" and "making up ####e" ? Axis, after all, merely means "partnership" or "alliance" and there's many observers noting this alliance.


Here's Jane's Defence Weekly

Iran and Syria have signed a further memorandum of understanding (MoU) on defence co-operation to address what both sides described as "American and Israeli threats".

Citing diplomatic sources, Jane's reported in 2005 that Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki signed a confidential strategic accord on 14 November 2005 with his counterpart Farouq al-Shara and Syrian Prime Minister Naji al-Otari, "which includes a sensitive chapter dealing with co-operation and mutual aid during times of international sanctions, or scenarios of military confrontation with the West".

The sensitive chapter in the accord includes Syria's commitment to allow Iran to safely store weapons, sensitive equipment or even hazardous materials on Syrian soil should Iran need such help in a time of crisis, the sources said. Iranian military aid ranges from "the supply of weapons and ammunition and the training of Syrian personnel to co-operation and continuous transfer of technology and equipment in the areas of weapons of mass destruction [particularly the upgrade of Syrian missile and chemical warfare capabilities], to Iranian troops operating advanced weapon systems in Syria during a military confrontation", the sources added.

Fawaz Gerges here

There is a major battle raging in Lebanon between what I call on the one hand the Syrian-Iranian alliance and the American-led alliance in Lebanon.

Here's The Lebanese Daily Star

Hizbullah's attitude is only convincingly explained in the framework of Iran and Syria implementing a project to reclaim Lebanon, but more importantly perhaps to eliminate international, particularly Western, involvement in the Levant. After having won in Gaza, Tehran and Damascus are now pushing forward in South Lebanon. Their joint objective, regardless of their different priorities on other matters, appears to be to remove the Siniora government, undermine United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, and create a situation where the international community would have to accept a Syrian return to Lebanon, which would, by extension, scuttle the Hariri tribunal.

Here's the Turkish Policy Quarterly on the Syro-Iranian axis

The first converging factor in the Damascus-Tehran relations is their anti-Western (especially anti-American) stance and anti-Zionism. By creating an Arab-Islamic bloc, Iran and Syria aimed to counter the American hegemonic influences in the region and to counter the Israeli threat, as they perceived it.

So I don't think that the existance of an Iranian/Syrian alliance is controversial. That they are funding Hezbollah and Hamas and supporting Iraqi insurgents is also not controversial. Thus, we have here an axis of nations working to frustrate American goals and kill American soldiers. That is something to note, no?