By: Kayhan Int’l Staff Writer
Just days before having to give up his rule to Republican President-elect Donald Trump, President Barack Obama has declared fresh sanctions against Syria.
He has also declared the continuation of national emergency against Iran, claiming that despite full commitment to its nuclear deal with the six world powers, the Islamic Republic still poses "an unusual and extraordinary threat” to America.
This is not surprising, as old habits die hard. It is now a telling yarn that U.S. presidents will do more or less anything just to appease the Zionist regime of Israel and the cult of military - industrial complex. This is commonly done by way of scapegoating, sanctions, arms race and regime-change wars. The Syrian case is extreme, but it must not be seen in isolation.
The State Department claims the fresh sanctions were imposed "in response to the use of chemical weapons” by the Syrian government without pointing to a specific case or evidence.
This is while UN-affiliated international anti-chemical agencies have found no conclusive proof of any government role in chemical attacks within Syria. Quite the contrary, they say foreign-backed militants have used poisonous gases against Syrian forces and civilians since they began their terror campaign. 
It means what it means. Just like Noble Peace Prize winner Obama, the so-called "anti-establishment” president-elect will fail to hold his ground and prevail - if any. Elements within the Pentagon, the CIA, the national-security apparatus, the NATO bureaucracy, and the military - industrial complex will go to any lengths to prevent whatever kind of détente Trump may have in mind.
To his chagrin, the war party will continue to build military bases in the Middle East, even in Syria, under the pretext of fighting ISIL and Al-Qaeda. The intention is to deepen U.S. involvement in the war.
The program is a secret component of a broader effort that also involves airstrikes and an influx of U.S. military advisers and troops into Iraq. This is while, according to analysts from IHS Jane’s Terrorism and Insurgency Center, "U.S. air war is not leading to any tangible results in slowing ISIL’s ability to carry out attacks.”
Moreover, there is little indication that U.S.-trained and armed militants have had any impact on the direction of the conflict in Syria. According to Rep. Adam B. Schiff, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, "Scenes of the moderate opposition melting away, running away or joining league with Al-Qaeda-allied Al-Nusra Front is a good indication of the difficulty we’re having.”
Long story short, there is plenty of appetite for the war in Washington, mostly within the Congress and the incoming administration of Donald Trump. There’s so much eagerness in expanding the war that no one wants to put down on paper what the limits of the current escalation (fresh sanctions) will be under the Trump administration.
U.S. officials are hoping the new sanctions will entrench their influence and keep regional countries within an American orbit. On the contrary, experience tells us sanctions only generate public anger, protests and anti-US sentiments.
Experience also tells us that proliferation of new bases will simply militarize large swathes of Iraq and Syria. It will heighten tensions with neighbors and could even lead to new conflicts - with Trump at the helm.