Boris Weighs The Options
Boris Johnson has been having a hard time in the press over recent days with much of the criticism focusing on his character and personal life.
But my complaint about Boris is that he's a complete 'chancer' whose views change like the weather to suit his purpose or which country he's in perhaps.
Compare this extract from an article in The Sunday Telegraph in which Boris 'celebrates' the liberation of Palmyra with Boris's comments from September 2013 compare President Assad to Adolf Hitler.
Bravo for Assad – he is a vile tyrant but he has saved Palmyra from Isil (The Telegraph - 28 March 2016)
The Syrian regime, with military help from Russia, is succeeding where the West has failed
I suppose it is bizarre to feel such joy at the military success of one of the vilest regimes on earth. But I cannot conceal my elation as the news comes in from Palmyra and it is reported that the Syrian army is genuinely back in control of the entire Unesco site.
There may be booby traps in the ruins, but the terrorists are at last on the run. Hooray, I say. Bravo – and keep going. Yes, I know. Assad is a monster, a dictator. He barrel-bombs his own people. His jails are full of tortured opponents. He and his father ruled for generations by the application of terror and violence – and yet there are at least two reasons why any sane person should feel a sense of satisfaction at what Assad’s troops have accomplished
The Metro - 3 September 2013
The west should not make the same mistakes with Syria as it did with Nazi Germany, Boris Johnson has said, as he compared Bashar al-Assad to Adolf Hitler.
The mayor of London wants MPs to ‘think again’ on military intervention in Syria if Congress backs US president Barack Obama’s call for strikes after last month’s suspected chemical weapons attack.
Mr Johnson, echoing David Cameron’s comments last week, said a targeted bombing campaign would show that ‘in the end, when a tyrant decides to use unlawful weapons, gas, to murder innocent civilians, we will not stand idly by’.
Now on balance it's a good thing that the Islamic State are no longer in control of Palmyra, but this is not a cause for celebration because Syria's civil war is down to President Assad's tyrannical regime and his ruthless use of the army to suppress demands for political change.
The Syrian regime, with military help from Russia, is succeeding where the West has failed
I suppose it is bizarre to feel such joy at the military success of one of the vilest regimes on earth. But I cannot conceal my elation as the news comes in from Palmyra and it is reported that the Syrian army is genuinely back in control of the entire Unesco site.
There may be booby traps in the ruins, but the terrorists are at last on the run. Hooray, I say. Bravo – and keep going. Yes, I know. Assad is a monster, a dictator. He barrel-bombs his own people. His jails are full of tortured opponents. He and his father ruled for generations by the application of terror and violence – and yet there are at least two reasons why any sane person should feel a sense of satisfaction at what Assad’s troops have accomplished
The Metro - 3 September 2013
The west should not make the same mistakes with Syria as it did with Nazi Germany, Boris Johnson has said, as he compared Bashar al-Assad to Adolf Hitler.
The mayor of London wants MPs to ‘think again’ on military intervention in Syria if Congress backs US president Barack Obama’s call for strikes after last month’s suspected chemical weapons attack.
Mr Johnson, echoing David Cameron’s comments last week, said a targeted bombing campaign would show that ‘in the end, when a tyrant decides to use unlawful weapons, gas, to murder innocent civilians, we will not stand idly by’.
Now on balance it's a good thing that the Islamic State are no longer in control of Palmyra, but this is not a cause for celebration because Syria's civil war is down to President Assad's tyrannical regime and his ruthless use of the army to suppress demands for political change.
And for all the harm done to rare archeological artefacts in Palmyra, this is as nothing compared to the treatment of the Yazidis many of whom have been killed, with women and children sold into slavery.
