16 European Security & Defence 2015
European defence policy
A new alliance against evil that could bring peace to millions (BSC/Robert Walter*) This summer’s daily stream of migrants onto Europe’s shores and across the continent is a catastro-
list, be he fighting in or supporting ISIL, Daesh or Al Qaeda. The little children who drowned in the Aegean this summer
phe that will not abate until we all face up to our responsibili-
didn’t really want to go to Germany or Sweden or Belgium.
ties in Europe and the United States (U.S.).
They just wanted to go to school in Aleppo, to play in the
The refugees only seek the security that we all enjoy. Those
streets of Homs, to grow up in peace in Hama and to get
who flee the poverty and lack of opportunity in Africa and Asia
jobs in Damascus. The Syrian families we saw every night on
seek to share in our economic prosperity. They represent the
our TV screens have never looked for a new life in an alien
failure of Europe’s post-colonial policies, the failure of our over-
culture where they don’t speak the language, have no jobs
seas aid programmes and the failure of the WTO to develop
and dislike the climate. They just want to live in peace in their
trade as an economic lever.
established
But most clearly they also
communities
represent the failure of western
in Syria and
military intervention in Afgha-
Iraq.
nistan, the Middle East and North Africa. Our TV screens and consciences this summer have been focused on the
“We must unite to destroy the evil, before the new caliphate terrorises and destroys us all!”
If we are to address this problem at its source then
refugees, the desperate peo-
some of our
ple fleeing for their lives from
leaders may
conflicts in Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Somalia and most particularly
have to hold their noses, abandon their prejudices and rethink
Syria. In Syria alone, 250.000 dead, 12 million internally dis-
previous strategies. But in the interests of humanity Europe
placed and 4 million in camps in Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey
and the U.S. must talk to Russia, to the Assad regime, to Iran,
or roaming across Europe in search of shelter and security.
to Israel, to the Gulf States and to Egypt.
Western military intervention has successfully removed some
Any proposal that the way forward in Syria must involve
of the bad guys … the Taliban, Saddam and Gaddafi. But,
Assad and Hezbollah will be difficult for many western allies.
what have we left in their place? … chaos, instability and the
Assad is not part of the long term solution. After the break-up
emergence of evil, intolerant extremists who terrorise and mur-
of the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s and the conflict that en-
der their people. This self-proclaimed caliphate has no moral
sued, a solution, leading to a peace process only came about
compass and is beyond any conventional diplomatic dialogue.
by including the very perpetrators of the bloodshed. But, we
Bloodied by earlier policy failures, our electorates and there-
should remember that subsequently Milosevic and Mladic
fore our governments are reluctant to propose military solutions
were brought to justice and faced international tribunals in
to the crisis. There is no cry in Europe or the U.S. to put “boots
The Hague for their crimes. Direct Russian intervention in
on the ground”. But that is not an excuse for doing nothing, or
Syria should focus a European response, lest we appear weak
even just doing a little. If I focus on Syria and Iraq; what a pity
and indecisive. At no time since the end of the cold war has it
that the 3 largest military powers in the eastern Mediterranean;
been more important for Europe, the U.S. and Russia to come
Egypt, Israel and Turkey are not talking to each other. What
together with the regional powers in the Middle East, to enga-
a crying shame that in 4 years we have failed to get Bashar
ge, not just with the consequences, but to deal with the root
al-Assad to the conference table, failed, until quite recently, to
causes of the crisis. Who knows, perhaps this kind of coope-
engage with Iran and failed to identify a common approach,
ration might also help us find long overdue solutions in Palesti-
political, diplomatic or military, with Russia.
ne and Ukraine. But for now, we must unite to destroy the evil,
In this situation the Iraqi government forces will struggle
before the new caliphate terrorises and destroys us all.
to even hold their current positions. The “moderate” Syrian opposition, including their Kurdish allies, is fighting valiantly on
*Robert Walter, MP for North Dorset 1997 – 2015, Leader of the
two fronts: against a reinforced Assad regime and against their
U.K. delegation, VP of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council
extremist competitors. The real enemy is the evil fundamenta-
of Europe, and Member of the Advisory Board BSC 2015
