U.S. Backed Syrian Rebels Are Turning to Russia for Support

Our government has spent a lot of good money your tax dollars to train and arm a number of rebel groups in Syria. Unfortunately, they didn’t pay or equip them very well. That’s why the Russian government is apparently trying to convince them to switch sides, in exchange for “unlimited amounts of weaponry and close air support.”

According to Mustafa Sejry, a rebel leader who recently spoke with The Daily Beast, a representative from Moscow offered him all of the support he needs if his group ditches Washington and allies itself with Russia. It’s an offer that is difficult to refuse, considering how he and his men have been treated by the US.

Our government has consistently failed to provide these rebels with basic supplies and air support, and routinely pays them less than they were initially offered, or not at all. “We’ve received only one month worth of salaries in the last three months,” Sejry said. Our government has also failed to provide them with essential replacement parts for equipment that was damaged while fighting ISIS. “We lost a lot of vehicles and mounted machine guns. We can’t fix or replace broken ones.”

Sejry initially tried to use this offer as leverage to convince his American handlers to give him more support. However, these backers haven’t indicated that they care about the Russians trying to flip the rebel forces that they’ve spent nearly two years supporting. So now Sejry is seriously considering Russia’s offer. “We feel betrayed. Now other options are on the table.”

Clearly, Washington has lost its proxy war in Syria. It sounds like they’re slowly backing out of the conflict and leaving their allies to fend for themselves.