LordKiran
Veteran Member
Some people want to think of this as a proxy Sunni-Shia war. Except it isn't. Syria is 73% Sunni. Iran, it's ally, is Shia. They are on the same side as the Eastern Orthodox Russians.
This is a proxy war, which is why I think this could lead to World War Three. Russia is taking advantage of the US being so inept over the last two decades in both diplomacy and military activity. The Russian sphere of influence in the Middle-East is growing, the US sphere of influence is shrinking. The military leaders of the US don't like that. This is a proxy war between the US and those countries that openly defy the US sphere of influence. That's why Russia claiming control of the airspace after the US military shot down an Syrian warplane is significant.
Some say this is because the US is the world's policeman, a role that isn't necessarily appreciated by the rest of the world. But here in the US we tolerate wrong-house warrantless no-knock raids that result in fatalities, so if the US is the world's policeman then it appears that the US treats other countries the way it treats its own citizens. And people wonder why countries like Syria invited the Russians in.
When was the last time a proxy war even escalated to full-on war? nevermind a world war for a second.