Or at least Donald Tusk the president of the European council has, as described here, here and here.
Astute people should have realised late last year that perhaps about 50% or so of the migrants are not genuine refugees, but economic migrants. Now the EU realises that mass deportations need to be carried out, as was realised by a number of European governments last month.
Apparently 2,000–3,000 migrants are arriving in Greece every day. It is now clear that Austria and the Balkan states have moved to stricter and stricter border controls. So even if the number of people entering Greece does not accelerate (but it probably will as summer approaches) that means about another 1 million or more people coming into Greece in 2016.
After years of austerity, one wonders what will happen to Greece if the Balkan countries continue to tighten their borders and a tidal wave of a million people flood Greece.
If scenes like this in the video below of what happened early this week at the Greek town of Idomeni bordering Macedonia become normal and massive migrant camps like that in Calais appear all over Greece, one really wonders what the political mood in Greece will start to look like this year.
Alternatively, if the flood of people is allowed into the Balkans and into Germany and other Western European countries or if, as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey wants, large numbers are taken directly from Turkey to Western Europe, the political consequences there will most likely be a massive swing towards the populist right.
I applaud you for making the case for a neo-conservative style intervention in Syria LK. I wouldn't have expected it of you.
ReplyDeleteHmmm, not sure how you come to this conclusion, Ken B, unless it is tongue in cheek.
DeleteObama's neocon-lite foreign policy has been disastrous in the Middle east. His policy has been to topple Assad by supporting and arming rebels or alleged "moderate" rebels (excuse me while I burst into laugh) while gingerly opposing the other insurgents, all the time while allowing the Gulf states and Turkey to arm and support these insane rebels and religious nutjobs.
This neocon-lite schizophrenic policy has been **precisely** what has caused this horrible Syrian civil war to become so bad.
What is needed is an old-fashioned *realist* policy, not neoconservative lunacy.
The US should let Russia smash all the rebels, and at the same time use all its power to stop the gulf states and Turkey intervening in Syria. Assad, for all his crimes and brutality, is better than the genocidal medieval fanatic rebels.
Look at what a neocon-lite policy did in Libya: total catastrophe.
Do you really think secular liberal democracy has any chance in the Middle East? That region is gripped by religious insanity even worse than what Europe had in the 17th century.
How can you suspect me of irony? Accusations of litotes will soon follow I expect.
Delete"The US should let Russia smash all the rebels,"
Do the rebels include ISIS? If so this is an idea worth exploring but I won't say yea or nay just yet.
As for your last bit I agree. When the Arab Spring (so called) happened I was virtually alone in predicting woe and saying Mubarak was bteer than the alternatives. Not quite alone, the two Egyptians I know, one a friend one a former boss, both older and well educated, agreed with me. Privately and under their breath.
Sure, all the rebels should be totally smashed, from the imaginary "moderates" to the ultra-insane lunatics like IS. As I said, end the new absurd Cold war with Russia and support Russia in this effort. Also, Turkey seems to be a threat to the Middle East and to the Europe. Certainly if Turkey ever joins the EU it will be total catastrophe. Can you believe the EU leadership will accept an open door with Turkey? Insanity.
DeleteThat's one of the issues I changed my mind on over the past 20 years. I used to favour EU membership for Turkey.Now I see it as a catastrophe in waiting.
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