MAURO GIA SAMONTE

THE target strikes last week by 59 Tomahawk missiles ordered by United States President Donald Trump against the Shayrat airfield of Syria signals a full escalation of what the Syrian civil war has really been: a proxy war between America and Russia. Over the past half-decade, the two world powers have managed to camouflage their engagement in the Syrian crisis through various sly devices, such as, reportedly by the US, the organization and funding of the terrorist group IS which carries the brunt of the rebellion against the Assad government, and by the Soviet Union’s equipping and full logistical support of the Assad military in battling the rebels. No doubt, the Trump order for the Tomahawk target strikes came as a retaliation by the US against the chemical weapons attack launched by the regime in the Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun, injuring scores of civilians. But the swiftness with which it came about indicated a firm resoluteness in the US presidency uncharacteristic of past US administrations, that of just past President Barak Obama being the more recent one. Trump’s swift decision was made at a time when he was preparing to go to a state dinner for visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping.

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