Richard Walker: Russia Draws Line in Sands of Syria!

The pretense of Russian Special Forces and military advisers in Syria is a further sign Moscow is drawing a line in the sand in the Middle East to let Israel, the United States and others in the West know it will not permit the overthrow of another government there. Units of Russia's special forces, Spetsnaz, left Sevastopol on Dec. 4, 2011, on board the Black Sea fleet patrol ship Ladny, which linked up with the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov and other vessels weeks later in the Mediterranean. On January 8, 2012, they sailed into the Syrian port of Tartus, where Russia . has a large naval facility. It was there that a US spy satellite reportedly caught Spetsnaz military advisers and weapons being unloaded into Syria. The Russian move should not have come as a surprise to Tel Aviv or Washington. Sooner or later, Russia was going to put its foot down after it became apparent Israel was close to dragging the US into a war with Iran and had Washington's for covert strategies to overthrow the Syrian government led by Bashar al-Assad. For some time, Israel and its backers on Capitol Hill have failed to recognize Russia has a strategic interest in the region and is never going to permit a reshaping of the map of the Middle East to suit Israel and the United States. There are big issues at stake that the hawks in Tel Aviv and Washington ignore at their peril. Beginning with Iran, Russia sees it as a major energy source and a doorway to the Caucasus and the Caspian Basin. The Iranians fear if that doorway were to be closed by the creation of a pro-Zionist regime in Iran, Russia and China's energy pathways would be in jeopardy. To reinforce that point, on January 12, Dmitry Rogozi, Russia's deputy prime minister, warned an attack on Iran would threaten Russia's national security. A similar view was expressed in the past by Vladimir Putin, who was recently elected for the third time as Russian president.