By fighting in Syria, we are addressing the effect rather than the cause

Independent human rights advocate and geopolitical expert Arbak Khachatryan shared his opinion on the fight against terrorism with Argumenty Nedeli.

“Russia has a great history and culture, the unbending spirit of its people, an enormous, resource-rich territory, and nuclear capabilities. So why isn’t Russia a superpower?” A. Khachatryan asks. “Because the economy is run by ‘Yeltsin-Gaidar metastases.’ Because, instead of feeding the people, they invent enemies and unleash wars. Because you cannot defeat a terrorist by waving a nuclear club: he would only be glad of it, becoming a ‘nuclear martyr.’ If we do not break this criminal international system now, then soon the fire will erupt in Russia itself, starting at the edges. And it will not only be the returning, trained ISIS militants (the organization’s activities are banned in Russia by a Supreme Court ruling), whom we are frightened with, but also our own, homegrown nationalists and fascists.”

In Khachatryan’s view, “In Moscow, ordinary people at least get a few crumbs, but in the regions and the CIS, to survive you have to be a shady operator; and this is no longer about people, but about state institutions and security structures—everything is permeated by the spirit of hucksterism.”