Robb’s Report

John Robb has a pair of intriguing posts today (a high output for him) on the war against DAESH in the Middle East. The first, about the increasing irrelevance to U. S. diplomacy of the Middle East, concludes:

• If the US does get involved in Middle East conflicts it’s due to outdated policy and doctrine.
• Nobody in the West will do anything to stop the spread of ISIS (as a humanitarian crisis it rates well below Rwanda).
• Saudi Arabia is going to get desperate to get the US to intervene. It sees ISIS as an existential threat. How will it do that? I’ve got some ideas…

In the second he expands on what the Saud family’s options actually are:

1. Build a wall
2. Get Al Qaeda to fight on their side by attacking the U. S. which would force the U. S. hand against DAESH.
3. Hire Western mercenaries

They’re already building their wall, I’m skeptical of the efficacy of the second, and I think the U. S. is being prepped as the best candidate for “Western mercenary”.

Interesting stuff.