“Containment is insufficient to address the full range of threats ISIS poses. Bringing Kennan back in tells us that containment is a limited strategy that doesn’t seek destruction of the enemy. It is possible to limit ISIS’s expansion and weaken its hold over territory, but because ISIS is also an an ideological movement and a transnational terrorist organization, defeat is not possible through containment. The populist alternatives, carpet bombing ISIS or launching a ground invasion, also do not recognize the multifaceted threat posed by ISIS. In fact, these solutions may do harm than good and have the potential to broaden and deepen community support for militant groups. While ISIS is a different adversary, these lessons from from the Cold War can be useful for thinking about how to best counter the threat posed by ISIS.”
“Taking Sides: The United Nations’ Loss of Impartiality, Independence and Neutrality in Syria” (The Syria Campaign)
“As the humanitarian situation in Syria has deteriorated, the calculation of ‘playing the government’s game’ as the UN official describes it, has been justified as necessary by the UN in order to gain access to people who need aid. An evaluation of the WFP’s work in Syria writes that ‘Management judged that its interests in delivering food to the maximum number of people in need are best served by maintaining close relations with the Syrian government and negotiating behind the scenes for access.’ Yet humanitarian access has not increased -- in fact the opposite has happened. Over one million people in Syria are now living under siege. The government is involved in besieging 99% of people under siege. There is severe imbalance in both the quantity and quality of aid provided in areas controlled by the government and areas outside their control. In some cases this is because extremist groups like the Islamic State (ISIS) have prevented UN access. In most cases it is because the government has purposefully punished areas outside of its control through deprivation of humanitarian aid.”
Despite the Emirati announcement, the warring parties in Yemen seem no closer to reaching a negotiated settlement, and the internationally-recognized government is reportedly close to walking out of U.N.-backed peace talks in Kuwait. Yemeni Foreign Minister Abdul Malek Al Mikhlafi said that the talks have gone nowhere and “are revolving in a vacuum.” Earlier this week, the release of a three-point roadmap for a settlement proposed by the U.N. Yemen envoy was delayed due to disagreements between the parties. “The gap remains wide between the two sides,” a Western diplomat told AFP.