By Micah Halpern
I've Been Thinking:
Sanctions are the kind of thing Westerners understand. They are one of the only tools that can have an impact and that can help convince oppressive regimes to change.
Sometimes they work - sometimes they have the opposite effect.
Syria is the perfect example.
The EU has stepped up their sanctions on Syria. Heating oil, specifically, is not to be exported to Syria.
So who gets hurt by the lack of heating oil in Syria? The very people who want to oust Assad. Assad is not hurt at all, he has plenty of heating oil and he makes certain that those loyal to him have heat.
There was a delivery of heating oil to Syria on Wednesday by AOT, a Swiss company. Unfortunately, they are the only ones who understand what is really happening.
If ousting Assad is a priority, the actions applied should place pressure on Assad, not on those we are trying to support and to protect.
Micah@MicahHalpern.com
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