Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail)
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My apologies, as I had to go speak in the Seanad. I have picked up the threads of what was said from speaking to my colleagues. I am a little alarmed with the answers Dr. Pierret has given. It is a very complex and difficult situation but the Syrian army and regime looks as if it is winning the war. It might take some time for that to happen. I do not know whether the witnesses agree. It is also obvious at this stage that the opposition is far from being a homogenous group. It is made up of many diverse groups including some jihadists and al-Qaeda organisations.

Dr. Pierret should correct me if I misinterpret him but his response seemed to be that perhaps the Americans should bomb the regime and follow through on the threat they made. That would be disastrous. Dr. Pierret does not paint any picture of what would happen subsequently. There is no denying the Assad regime is a brutal one but would the cure be as bad or worse than the disease? We have seen that in other places in the Middle East. I just read a report in today’s newspaper, for example, that in Maaloula – a town that has been totally destroyed – Christians were driven out and some of them were killed. Moderate Islamists were also killed. I look at what the US did, for example, in Iraq. I doubt there are too many people there who say that what the US did has been a panacea for their problems and what they would have liked to see happen even though Saddam Hussein was brutal as well. Another way must be found to deal with such issues. It strikes me that simplistic answers will not resolve complex situations.

The lack of cohesion among the international community is an issue that applies everywhere, including Ukraine, which we may discuss later, but I do not regard what Dr. Pierret said as being any sort of solution. In terms of having a transitional body, I believe the extremists have an agenda, as we have seen in other countries, that will not end when the war is over. It will continue, but Dr. Pierret does not appear to have factored that into the equation.