Vladimir Putin is a black belt and a Master of Sports in
Judo.
Political analyst Amine Kamourieh, writing today
for the independent Beirut daily an-Nahar, says the Russian president is also
an excellent hunter and marksman. And he just proved to be an accomplished
acrobat who can execute a full back somersault at the last minute to avoid
falling into an abyss.
Kamourieh continues:
Putin can be a Machiavellian diplomat at a whim and is always
prepared to hide his deadly iron fist in a velvet glove. His attributes, love of the spotlight and innumerable
qualities while in office made him a media superstar on the world stage.
In the Syria crisis, Russia's new tsar showed a penchant for
global leadership.
Yesterday, he proved to be a Chess Grandmaster. With one
spectacular move, his "Rook" checkmated America's "Black
King" that has been threatening Syria.
Hours earlier, a potential military strike from U.S. forces
was hanging over Syria.
Talk was not so much about the strike's timing as about its sequels.
The Russian Grandmaster changed all this with an airtight proposal.
If the strike on Syria is to deter Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad from using his chemical arsenal, better put Syria's chemical weapons
stockpiles under international control and spare Syria and the rest of the
world the evils of war and its likely catastrophic aftermath.
The proposal puts U.S. plans for a strike against Syria on
hold.
Putin's smart suggestion helps U.S. President Barack Obama and Assad climb down
the high tree. By so doing, the Russian president avoided a head on clash
between Moscow and Washington over Syria and let his Syrian ally off the hook
while denying Damascus the opportunity of claiming "victory."
By yielding control of its chemical weapons, which it
invariably described as a "strategic" asset in a face-off with
nuclear Israel, the Syrian regime would be effectively turning tail on what it
usually described as a "sovereign" issue. The Syrian regime would at the same time be implicitly owning up to (chemical
weapons) violations.
Putin's plan also helps Obama save face after talking himself
into a corner on intervention in Syria and finding it hard to muster the
support of Congress, the American public and U.S. allies for action against
Assad forces.
The plan for international control of Syrian chemical weapons
steals Obama's thunder. If adopted and implemented, it would crown Putin's move
as one of the greatest since the days of the Russian Grandmasters.
