Mission accomplished? What's next for battered Syria after U.S. strikes

John Bacon | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption New sanctions will be imposed on Russia U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley says new sanctions will be imposed on Russia.

The military strike in Syria that drew a gleeful "Mission Accomplished" from President Trump on Twitter is not exacting the same elation from some Middle East experts who see a long, hard climb to peace in the war-weary Muslim nation.

The strike on President Bashar Assad's chemical weapons facilities was the price Syria paid for using chemical weapons on its citizens. Now Russia will pay an economic price for backing Assad in the form of more economic sanctions, U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley said Sunday.

Charles Glass, author of Syria Burning, says there is a good chance bombings will extend the war. And he doubts that sanctions against Russia will move the needle.

"More bombings and the continued presence of 2,000 U.S. troops in northeast Syria ... would undoubtedly prolong the war and the suffering of Syria's people," Glass told USA TODAY. "Better than a military strike would be serious discussions between the U.S. and Russia on ending the conflict."

Glass notes that Syria was Russia's only Arab ally when the bloody Syrian civil war began seven years ago. The U.S., he said, didn't want to oust Assad because he was a dictator — most U.S. allies in the region are led by dictators. The U.S. goal was to break the Syrian alliance with Iran and Russia, Glass said.

"All (the U.S.) has achieved by arming the mainly jihadist opposition is the increase of Assad's dependence on Iran and Russia," Glass said. "The strategy failed. It must be time for a new one."

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James Piazza, a Penn State professor and Middle East expert, said he suspects the missile attacks will have a "negligible" effect on Syria's chemical weapons abilities.

"The last time the United States launched a missile attack against the Shayrat airfields (in April 2017), it really did not put a dent into Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal or air forces," Piazza said.

Piazza foresees limited sanctions on Russia, and he said Assad is unlikely to change his behavior with pressure from President Vladimir Putin.

Haley told CBS' Face the Nation that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will announce details of the sanctions Monday.

"They will go directly to any sort of companies that were dealing with equipment related to Assad and chemical weapons use," Haley said. "We wanted their friends Iran and Russia to know that we meant business and that they were going to be feeling the pain from this as well."

A perfectly executed strike last night. Thank you to France and the United Kingdom for their wisdom and the power of their fine Military. Could not have had a better result. Mission Accomplished! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 14, 2018

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Sunday that the sanctions are being imposed "without any link to any realities."

Trump also announced sanctions against Russia in August, accusing Putin's government of tampering with the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The legislation also called Putin out on human rights abuses.

"Now they punish us for the mere fact of being in the global arena," Zakharova said.

The military strikes in Syria Friday night were carried out by the U.S., France and Britain. More than 100 precision missiles targeted a scientific research center near Damascus, a chemical weapons storage facility west of Homs and a storage facility and command post near Homs.

French President Emmanuel Macron said he had persuaded Trump to commit long-term to Syria. Haley stressed the U.S. was "not looking for war" and "not looking to kill people."

"This was very strong attack on the chemical weapons program," she said.

Piazza said further, limited airstrikes are possible in Syria. But he said neither Trump nor the American people appear to have an appetite for a more involved military campaign in Syria.

The White House, mired in controversies, is not likely to pursue Assad too aggressively, Piazza said.

"I suspect he continues to brutally defeat the rebels and the people living in rebel areas and reasserts control over Syria," Piazza said. "With support from Russia and Iran."

Putin, in a phone call Sunday with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, described the U.S. strike as a violation of international law. Putin said such actions will inevitably lead to "chaos" in international relations, according to a readout released by the Kremlin.

Assad, Putin, Rouhani and Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah have accused the West of using the strikes to sabotage an international inquiry into the chemical weapons claims. They also called the attack an impediment to peace.

Haley said the United Nations would continue to work on a diplomatic solution but added that Assad was "not worthy" of direct talks with the U.S. She said the time had come for Russia and Iran to bring peace to the beleaguered nation.

"It's not moving near as fast as any of us want it to move, but this is a political process that needs to happen," she said.