Page 52 - 082517

Groton Daily Independent
Friday, Aug. 25, 2017 ~ Vol. 25 - No. 056 ~ 52 of 65
more pragmatic approach” to negotiations, saying he hoped an outcome could materialize by October. The shifts re ect the changing priorities of the opposition’s chief backers — the United States, Europe, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia — which are now more concerned with preserving their own, narrowly conceived
strategic interests, than they are with unseating Assad.
For the U.S., that means focusing on ghting the Islamic State group and containing Iran’s in uence in
Syria, to protect its ally Israel. Saudi Arabia, too, wants to contain its regional archrival, Iran, as well as wrest in uence away from Qatar, which is seen as a key backer to the HNC and some rebel groups on the ground. Ankara’s top priority is to contain the U.S.-backed Kurdish PYD party in northern Syria, which it fears will inspire Kurdish separatism in east Turkey.
Indeed, these nations have never seriously challenged Assad’s hegemony militarily, leaving Russia and Iran holding the cards.
Former President Barack Obama fastidiously avoided striking Assad’s forces, even after his administration concluded Damascus had trespassed the president’s “red line” against chemical warfare; U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is reported to have told the U.N.’s general secretary in July that President Donald Trump’s administration would leave Syria’s fate in Russia’s hands.
Syrian government forces have blocked aid agencies from delivering relief to several areas they have held under siege, and while the U.N. has condemned the tactic as “barbaric” and “medieval,” it has been criticized for paying dividends to Damascus, which has seen these areas capitulate one by one. Russia’s own leverage over the opposition comes from negotiating cease- res for besieged areas, which are oth- erwise pounded mercilessly by air strikes and artillery.
It’s not clear what the truces achieve in the long term. The same can be said about the opposition’s reorientation, if such a thing indeed happens.
At a rare public speech before Syrian diplomats in Damascus this week, a con dent Assad derided the West and declared Syria will look east when it comes to political, economic and cultural relations.
“We will not give them (our enemies) in politics what they failed to take in war,” he said. ___
Associated Press writer Zeina Karam in Beirut contributed to this report.
Hurricane Harvey likely to boost gas prices for US drivers By The Associated Press
Hurricane Harvey is expected to hit a re nery-rich stretch of the Gulf Coast and U.S. drivers could soon see the impact at the gas pump.
Some re neries are expected to shut down until the storm passes, possibly disrupting gasoline supplies.
Wholesale gasoline futures rose Thursday 5 cents, or 3 percent, to $1.66 per gallon, and experts say that will quickly show up on service-station signs.
“Starting (Thursday night) you could start to see the Harvey effect being factored into gas prices,” said Patrick DeHaan, an analyst with GasBuddy. “The good news is this isn’t Hurricane Katrina.”
That Gulf storm in August 2005 caused about a 40-cent increase overnight, DeHaan said. We might not know the full impact of Harvey until Monday, when re neries have had a chance to assess damage, which could be caused by ooding or power outages, he said.
“We’ll see retail prices move up in every nook and cranny of the country through this very uncertain weekend,” said Tom Kloza, an analyst with the Oil Price Information Service.
Kloza said an increase of 5 to 15 cents per gallon was most likely but a spike of up to 25 cents by Labor Day was possible if the hurricane hits a re ning center.
Before the storm crept so close to the Texas Gulf Coast, the nationwide average price for a gallon of regular gasoline rose a penny this week to $2.35, according to AAA. A year ago, the average price was $2.19 a gallon.
In the Gulf of Mexico, oil and natural gas operators have begun evacuating workers from offshore plat- forms.