When someone is pressed unanimously from all directions by most powerful leaders of the world on one issue, even the most courageous human could have buckled under their way. The same cannot, however, be said about Russian President Vladimir Putin who chose to remain adamant on supporting Syria's government even when he knows that he is increasingly getting isolated on the issue. No reason or rhyme seems to deter his belief that President Bashar al-Assad has done nothing wrong.
The G8 summit which was supposed to address issues on tackling trade, taxes, and transparency, has galvanized largely into a meeting ground for addressing the Syria issue, which seems to have captured the attention of every human with some social and political thrust.
With hands fidgeting and face growing increasingly uncomfortable, the Russian president seemed to be ingeniously composing reasons within his thoughts for his undeterred and uncompromising support for the Syrian regime, every time he faced a leader in a conference.
It was not less surprising that a meeting, wherein the most powerful leaders were to discuss the worst civil war of our era, was started off with a bitter rift on who has blood on their hands, or who eats the enemy's organs. Such a tête-à-tête that took place in London between David Cameron and Putin generated rather sore vibes that tended to herald further bloodshed in Syria, a nation torn apart by a ferocious war for more than two years.
A tensed encounter with Obama in a joint conference regarding the same painful subject gave Putin an uneasy ambiance that gripped him a pressing need to acknowledge the "common ground" that wants to see peace in Syria, while nothing nudged him into changing the notion he held about Syria.
It is interesting to note how this happened only days after Obama announced military aid to the battered rebel forces after confirming that the regime had used chemical weapons against their enemy. Even as the tensed conversations were underway in a quiet, serene suburb of Northern Ireland, the Los Angeles Times reported that some rebel groups in the war-stricken Syria had begun to receive US weaponry.
In what appears to be important events that have taken place within Syria, the summit discussion comes only weeks after al-Assad's forces befriended by Lebanese Hezbollah fighters seized the town of Qusair, which prompted many to think that the war was technically over with victory on the hands of the regime. Britain and France have also pushed for the lifting of the embargo that restricted them from supplying the rebel forces with arms until then. What followed was US' greater involvement into the war with declarations of aid to the rebels which, in some way, seemed to pull the sleeping giant into the battle.
Slaughter hasn't stopped on the ground while no meeting of any calibre seems likely to stop what is happening. It is not uncommon for world leaders to descend on a quiet place to stage talks on important matters. But while they are only "discussing" Syria, many Syrians are dying with every passing minute.
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