King of the North - Gog Alliance

Russia, Turkey Mull Next Steps in War-Torn Syria - VOA
VOA News reports: "Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Wednesday to coordinate their moves in Syria as their governments bargain over zones of influence in the war-torn country. The leaders share strong opposition to the U.S. military presence in Syria, seeing it as an obstacle to their clout in the country. The Kremlin meeting marked their first encounter since U.S. President Donald Trump announced the pullout of American troops in a Dec. 19 tweet. [...] Putin emphasized Moscow's readiness to respect Turkey's interests, but encouraged it to talk to the Syrian government to help stabilize the border areas."

Israel: Advanced missile defense system successfully tested - The Washington Post: Israel said Tuesday that it has successfully tested the country’s advanced missile defense system capable of defending against long-range ballistic missile threats. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toured an Israeli aerospace facility following the test and leveled a thinly veiled warning at Iran, just days after Israel struck Iranian military targets in neighboring Syria. [...] The test came amid mounting tensions between Israel and Iran along its northern border with Syria. Israel is concerned about Iran establishing military bases in neighboring Syria as the eight-year civil war winds down."


Comment: Strange to think of Russia, Turkey and Iran carving up Syria like old colonial powers. The loser in all of this is Assad. Does he really think he "won" his civil war? And the U.S. pulling out, that was unexpected. The wild card remains Israel. Netanyahu has already stated on the record that Iran keep troops based permanently in Syria is a non-starter and Israel recently raised the public profile of their frequent military strikes at Iranian targets inside Syria. The message has been delivered. What happens next?