Patrick Wintour, The Guardian: Syria will see US price for chemical attack as worth paying
Whether Trump opts for single retaliatory act or wider response, Assad will think he is winning
Donald Trump’s Twitter warning that a big, albeit unspecified, price will be paid for Bashar al-Assad’s alleged use of chemical weapons on innocent civilians in Douma points to some form of punitive military strike being launched by western forces.
The tweet is all the more remarkable for containing some of Trump’s first direct criticism of Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, and his role in protecting Assad.
But it leaves open the question of whether the US president will opt for a discrete punishment or a more ambitious and co-ordinated attempt both to wipe out Syria’s chemical weapons stockpile and end Assad’s impunity.
Read more ....
Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- April 8, 2018
U.S. Officials: Unclear Which Chemical Syria Used in Attack -- Spencer Ackerman & Noah Shachtman, Daily Beast
Trump needs to take drastic action against gas attack -- Stephen Bryen, Asia Times
Syria attack shows we now live in a world where using chemical weapons is considered OK -- and that should terrify us -- Harry J. Kazianis, FOX News
The Terrible Cost of Obama's Failure in Syria -- Kathy Gilsinan, The Atlantic
The Logic of Assad's Brutality -- Thanassis Cambanis, The Atlantic
Turkey the powerbroker in Syrian struggle -- Michael Jansen, Irish Times
Turkish voices stifled by new law as Ankara launches crackdown -- Jonathan Gorvett, Asia Times
The True Story of al-Qaeda’s Demise and Resurgence in Syria -- Tore Refslund Hamming & Pieter Van Ostaeyen, Lawfare
If Trump wants to defeat ISIS, America must stabilize Syria -- Frances Brown and Melissa Dalton, The Hill
To Protect Interests Abroad, China Will Feature a Diverse Array of Military, Nonmilitary Forces -- Timothy R. Heath, National Interest
The worst job in South Korea? The president -- Andrew Salmon, Asia Times
Why Estonia—Yes, Estonia—Is Suddenly One of the Wealthiest Countries in Eastern Europe (and the Most Innovative) -- Luis Pablo De La Horra, Intellectual Takeout
Can Costa Rica’s New President Restore Voters’ Faith in Mainstream Politics? -- Christine Wade, WPR
Mark Zuckerberg’s Apology Tour -- Andrew Marantz, New Yorker
From Augustus to FDR, why a nimble mind is the key to successful leadership -- Colin Kidd, New Statesman