Eric Draitser, the founder of StopImperialism.com, made the remarks in a phone interview with Press TV on Thursday while commenting on the ongoing Russian air campaign against Daesh (ISIL) terrorists in Syria.
There is a couple of different aspects to what Russia is doing in terms of the airstrikes in Syria, Draitser said.
First and foremost, this is exactly what Russia says it is, namely a war against terrorism, a war against [Takfiri] extremism sponsored by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and fostered by the United States, Israel and their allies in the region, including Turkey, he stated.
So in one sense, and in a very realistic sense, Russia is concerned about its own national security in terms of the terrorist elements in the Caucasus region, its concerned about the stability in the Middle East, he added.
Its concerned about a number of military issues, including its foothold in the Mediterranean, economic issues in terms of oil market, and political issues in terms of influence in the Middle East as it attempts to rebuild the influence that it has lost over the course of the last few decades, the analyst continued.
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An image grab made from a video released by the Russian Defense Ministry on October 5, 2015 shows a Russian aircraft dropping bombs during an airstrike against ISIL terrorists. (AFP photo)[/caption]So all of that is very much true, but there is another aspect to this that really deserves attention, specifically the way in which Russia is using this mission in Syria to demonstrate to the United States and to the world exactly what Russias capacity and capability is, both militarily and politically, he pointed out.
In other words, Russia is demonstrating that it is not simply a regional power, and it is not simply another country that will accept the diktats of the West or of anybody, rather Russia is a global leader, that it is a leader in terms of policy, and that it is a leader in terms of action, Draitser observed.
And most importantly, the activist said Russia wants to show that it is a leader that presents an alternative to the United States and to the Western/imperial system.
Ultimately that is what Russia wants to demonstrate, and it also wants to demonstrate that it is not going to simply be pushed around militarily by the United States anymore, he continued.
Russia started airstrikes in Syria last week to target terrorist groups fighting against the Syrian government. On Wednesday, Russian warships also began to launch missiles into the Arab country from the Caspian Sea.
By Press TV
