Original link: http://middleeastobserver.net/nasrallah-it-was-irans-soleimani-who-convinced-putin-to-enter-syria-war/
Video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJ53nEfYWz0
Description:
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah recounts how assassinated Iranian General Qassim Soleimani held a two-hour long meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and convinced him to militarily enter the war in Syria in support of the government in Damascus and its allies.
Source: Al Mayadeen Programs (YouTube)
Date: December 27, 2020
Transcript:
– The Host:
Did martyr Qassim Soleimani really meet Russian President Vladimir Putin, and talk to him in person about the deployment of Russian forces to Syria?
-Sayyed Nasrallah:
That is correct. There had been discussions before (regarding this issue). As you know, before its intervention (in Syria), Russia maintained a (purely) political stance. It initially started as a political stance. Russia would use its veto power in the Security Council to defend and protect (Syria). It would provide help in logistical and intelligence matters, but (its support) never got to the point of establishing a (military) presence (in Syria).
Anyway, the shifts in the battle in Syria began only in the second year (of the war). The curve (showing the authority/position of the Syrian government) was descending in the first year, but by the second and third years, the curve began to ascend.
However, of course, the battle would have dragged on …
– The Host:
(the curve began to ascend) in mid-2013 …
– Sayyed Nasrallah:
(The battle) would have dragged on for much longer than it did (if not for Russia’s intervention). Therefore, Russia’s military intervention (in Syria) was highly important. We cannot deny that.
That day (when Soleimani went to Russia), Russian President Putin was hesitant, and as you know Russia was virtually besieged (at the time). It had (no influence) in the region i.e. in the Middle East. (The US) even stripped Russia (of its influence over) Eastern European states. One after another, (certain) states that neighbored Russia and were inside its sphere of influence were taken over by America.
Regardless, (the Russians) were concerned about this decision (intervention in Syria) as it could either be a risky step that was doomed to fail, or one that might achieve success. As a result, it was not a political discussion that would convince (Putin) but rather a military discussion.
At the time, after coordination between Iran and Russia, our brother Hajj Qassim (Soleimani) went to Moscow and met with President Putin for two hours – the length of the meeting is important. A number of relevant military, security and political officials were present (at the meeting as well). Hajj (Qassim) told me this (information) himself…(I heard this) directly from him, not through word of mouth. He said, “I spread the maps out on the table and (started talking about): the current situation, our location/positions (and by ‘our’ he means the Syrian army and all its allies), the location/positions of the armed groups, the opportunities for (military) action, and the chances of success”.
(In this meeting) he (Soleimani) presented a (comprehensive) strategic report to (Putin) on the situation in Syria and the region, (and explained) the proposed idea and the expected results. Of course, (in the meeting) he used a scientific, objective, military and battlefield language, (and based his statements) on maps, land areas, numbers and statistics. At this meeting, President Putin said to Hajj (Qassim): “I am convinced”, and the decision (for a Russian military effort in Syria) was made. This what I heard from Hajj Soleimani, and it is (now) well-known by everyone.
– The Host:
So can I say that the Russian intervention (in Syria started) with an Iranian initiative in consultation with Damascus, or at Syria’s request?
– Sayyed Nasrallah: It was at Syria’s request. (Syria) wanted (Russia) to take part (in this war).
– The Host: So Syria did not directly ask (Russia to intervene)?
– Sayyed Nasrallah:
(Syria) never asked Russia (to intervene)? I don’t know, but I suppose it did. That would be the obvious choice because there was an actual need…
– The Host: But Putin …
– Sayyed Nasrallah:
… there was an actual need for help. Mr. Ghassan, there is a leadership, a regime, a country that is facing global war, so it would be normal (for Syria) to ask Russia for help. Russia was hesitant to intervene. The Syrian and Iranian discussions…
Look, I am somewhat objective and rational. I do not like to create myths. It is not accurate to say that Hajj Qassim Soleimani (alone) is the one who convinced Putin to intervene (in Syria). I prefer to say that through his strategic reading (of events), argumentation, compelling logic, and charismatic personality, Hajj Qassim Soleimani was able to provide an outstanding addition to all the previous efforts that led Russia to take the decision to come to Syria. Great efforts were made (before) and many discussions were held, yet President Putin reportedly remained hesitant.
Hajj (Soleimani) was able to persuade (Putin). As you know, he was skilled in (the art of) persuasion and had (impeccable) logic . He did not shame Russia into (joining the war), nor did he use (empty) rhetoric. Not at all. He used a scientific language, as he explained the (possible) military and battlefield outcomes, as well as the political outcomes for the (Russian) intervention (in Syria).
I believe that today – following the (Russian) intervention in Syria and the major regional and global transformations – Russia, President Putin, the Russian people and everyone knows that Russia found its way back to the international arena through the gateway of Syria.
great information – very interesting
Thanks for posting
It’s debatable if General Soleimani really convinced President Putin to enter the Syrian war, bearing in mind Putin is a former high echelon member of the KGB to whom geopolitics is a familiar subject. General Soleimani certainly made a point for Russia’s intervention. However, it must have been Putin who made the final decision, bearing in mind the US and Saudi Arabia wanted to create a Muslim Caliphate in Syria, the intention for it to spread to the Caucuses and destabilize Russia. Putin certainly reacted accordingly, to the utter astonishment of NATO, which did not expect to see Russian troops in Syria.
“it must have been Putin who made the final decision”
Obviously he did. It simply goes without saying. If someone offers an argument to convince you to take a certain action, it does not mean that the decision was theirs. The decision is still yours obviously. The statements in the translated work above clearly state that.
With Love,
AH
I believe that there is a collective leadership in Russia, there had to be a consensus at least among the security people. It is not clear if it is Putin who has the final say on these issues.
There are more senior people than Putin in Russia’s establishment. I believe that Nikolai Patrushev is the main strategist.
Very interesting, thank you.
This is possibly also the main reason why the US assassinated General Soleimani?
This is possibly also the main reason why the US assassinated General Soleimani? I dont think so, not the main reason which I think was the success that Hezbollah had against the isreali army during the 2006 war. Ive read somewhere that Soleimani played a major role in organazing Hezbollah during that conflict which ended up with the israeli aremy being defeated.
Oscar
Soleimani was working with Iraq and Syria to have US “boots” leave Iraq.
This was well known in 2019. Memory holes are opening up everywhere now in this post truth dimension.
Soleimani was a successful battlefield commander. The ZIONATO empire was not capable of winning against him. The empire’s generals only know how to keep the small wars against the CIA’s Muslim outreach units going on forever.
Cowardly assassins.
There is no doubt whatsoever that without General Soleimani Russia would not have entered the fight in Syria.
By 2015 the fascist zionist colonialists were halfway through their project to establish their fake caliphate in Syria and Iraq. After two years of war Soleimani’s assessment was that the resistance front alone would not be able to preserve the Syrian government. The ground forces of the resistance needed serious air cover and air power that only Russia could provide. Very few took notice of the general’s mission to Moscow in 2015.
General Soleimani convinced President Putin by making a strong case that after Syria the Anglo zionists were headed for Russia’s soft underbelly and not Iran. In this he succeeded against all odds. However, in the end the military genius was to pay the highest price for having defeated the Anglo zionist project in Syria.
It is hard to believe that Russia was unaware of the situation in Syria and needed the prompting of Soleimani to take action. It is rather the other way round. It was a carefully weighted Russian political decision, taken at the appropriate moment and be sure that the military operation had been thoroughly prepared in advance, well before any Soleimani’s visit (which Russians deny it ever occurred).
It is hard to understand why Nasrallah is so evasive about Syria’s request for help and attributes Russia’s wake-up from indecision to the ‘compelling logic’, and ‘charismatic personality [of] Hajj Qassim Soleimani’.
Russia didn’t ”find its way back to the international arena through the gateway of Syria”. The visit of Soleimani to Moscow was not in any way some kind of a ‘strategic watershed for Putin’s decision to intervene in Syria’. Nor was this visit any kind of a strategic inflection point indicating that Iran had “won over” Moscow to pursue Tehran’s interests in Syria. , or evidence that Moscow and Tehran were joined at the hip as strategic partners in Syria much less elsewhere in the Middle East. Russia definitely is not in the Middle East to ‘liberate Al-Quds’ (rather to prevent it – like it or not Russia will not permit the destruction of ‘the Zionist entity’) and prop Shia Islam. The interdiction of Iranian airspace to Russian bombers in 2016 and the anti-Russian rhetoric which flares at times in Iran (the Iranian defense minister Hossein Dehqan declared that “The Russians are interested in showing that they are a superpower and guaranteeing their role in deciding the political future of Syria”, shows that the Russian Iranian coordination was not that close.
And you are a decision maker or the inner room in Russia, so you are aware of the behind the scene happening right?
Being aware of the reputations of Nasrallah and Soleimani as upright individuals, something the Israeli Zionist populace attest to, and coming from someone (Nasrallah) whose had direct access to Soleimani I will rather subscribe to what Nasrallah said. So thanks but no thanks.
The question really was why Nasrallah is so uncertain about the Syria formal request for Russian intervention which happened in July 2015. Probably because Hezbollah and Iran have not been able to stop the terrorists. Russia had to secure free flights over Iran and Iraq and that was the substance of the visits of Iranians to Moscow.
Russia had both its own intelligence presence on the ground in Syria and close ties with the regime’s intelligence apparatus. This meant that the Russian military had greater prior knowledge of the terrain and more effective collection there than in any other country of the region.
This is a wrong claim by Nasrallah. Russia was present in Syria since 1970s, with military and intelligence and it is very wrong to assume for any reason that Russia will depend on Iranian assessment of the situation in Syria, when it has strong presence in Syria for decades. Nasrallah wanted to achieve few agendas behind this claim: to hide the tension between Russia and Iran over influence in Syria.. and to promote Sulaimani as influential person with positive achievements.
The comment of many miss the essential truth of what Soleimani brought to Putin in his plea.
It wasn’t the facts on the ground. Putin had military and other sources of Intel on the state of the war, the soon to be defeated Syrian Army, the resulting collapse of the Assad government. He knew these things from daily briefings by his military and all the external security services.
What Soleimani brought was more than a plea. He pledged Hezbollah and the Quds Force would be in full force to be the shock troops alongside the special forces Russians who would guide the Russian air strikes.
What Soleimani needed was air power. The siege at Deir ez Zor required air power. Taking Aleppo and Homs and freeing Damascus and changing the facts on the ground required air power.
But for the Russians to do this with pinpoint precision would take putting hundreds of special forces in great jeopardy against ISIS positions in urban settings as well as out in the naked desert.
Thus, a coordination in precise detail between and among Hezbollah, the Tigers of the Syrian Army, the best Iranian militias and the Russian elite troops had to be assured. Soleimani brought that assurance.
After that, the coordination at the highest level of the Russian General Staff and Soleimani’s several armies was near perfection.
His commitment was displayed when the Turks shot down the Russian fighter jet. Soleimani led the search, risking his life on the ground in enemy territory and rescued the co-pilot. Soleimani’s men pinpointed the Turkmen units involved in killing the pilot as he parachuted and who shot down a helo searching for the co-pilot, killing the helo pilot. The Russians bombed the Turkmen areas decimating them.
Thus, Soleimani and the Russian military formed a very tight alliance. It began in Moscow. A man of honor and great leadership performed over and over to that pledge until the US assassinated him.
Over the years, the alliance saved hundreds of Russian lives and thousands of Russian casualties. Russian air power turned the war from defeat to victory. It was Soleimani’s pledge that made it happen.
History may record and document the General as modern Russia’s greatest ally.
Larchmonter445,
Your post is not only informative clear and concise. It’s beautifully put.
Thank you.
For your kind words, thanks.
Thank you for your excellent analysis 🙏
Brilliant. Also, dont forget that Putin visited Iran in 2015, Met with Khamenei (was somewhat awestruck) and a few days later announced in Esfahan that Russia will follow Iran (in drawing Church and Sate together for moral balance (as in Iran). Tribal Chief’s power is balanced by the Shaman!
Why has Syria & Russia & China not DEMANDED in the UN that the USA withdraw from Syria ? A BIG stink should be made of this because it’s against UN rules for the USA to be in another Country without permission.
I also am aware that the USA is the leader & Boss cocky at the UN —BUT embarrass the bastards !