September 12 – Putin Skillfully Plays His Weak Hand Against Our Inept Strong Hand; The Task of Destroying Syria’s Chemical Weapons Arsenals; The Legacy of the Colonial Divide-and-Rule Strategy in the Middle East

Full Program

Part 1

We begin with Russian President Putin’s op-ed in the New York Times “A Plea For Caution From Russia” and speak with Fiona Hill a specialist on Russia at the Brookings Institution and co-author of the new book “Mr. Putin: Operative in the Kremlin”. We discuss how Putin skillfully plays his weak hand while the U.S. clumsily plays its strong hand.

Part 2

Then we speak with an expert on chemical weapons at the Stimson Center Brian Findlay, to find out in the event that the U.S. – Russian deal to disarm Syria’s chemical arsenal goes through, how this vast arsenal can be corralled and destroyed in the midst of a civil war when 16 years after signing onto the international ban, the U.S. still has not gotten rid of all of the world’s second largest chemical weapons arsenal.

Part 3

Then finally we hear from the author of an article in The Atlantic “Stop Blaming Colonial Borders for the Middle East’s Problem” to get an alternative view on the roots of the current turmoil in Syria. Nick Danforth, the editor of the cartography blog, midafternoonmap.com joins us discuss how the pernicious policies of divide-and-rule that the British and French colonists used to sustain their power are more responsible for the post “Arab spring” chaos in the Middle East.