The message US missiles in Syria carry for regional power struggle

The balance of power in the region gets more complicated by the day. US missile strikes in Syria are merely the latest twist, as unforeseen events are likely to continue to muddy the geopolitical waters

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Syrians walk past damaged buildings on April 7 in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of Damascus. Photo: AFP

Published: 8:03pm, 8 Apr 2017Updated: 11:15pm, 8 Apr 2017

One thing this week’s US air strikes in Syria highlight is the fact that the sands are continuously shifting as regional and world powers jockey for position in a future Eurasian world order. The strikes raise questions that go far beyond potential greater US involvement in the Syrian conflict. The answer to those questions will likely impact the role America may play in Eurasia and the Asia Pacific.

What is surprising is not the fact that US President Donald Trump ordered the launching of missiles. What is surprising is that days after Trump declared that he was president of the United States – not president of the world – he was taken aback by the horror of the Syrian chemical weapons attack. He acted to uphold international law and packaged it in terms of compassion. The US strikes countered allegations that he may be beholden to Russia as well as not unfounded perceptions of Islamophobia or an anti-Muslim bias.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated he will not broadcast his foreign-policy intentions. Photo: Reuters

Trump may not have a clearly formulated policy framework. Or maybe he does – he has repeatedly stated that he would not broadcast his intentions. Whichever it is, he is keeping China on its toes with regard to North Korea. He is also keeping Iran guessing, particularly given the chances that President Hassan Rouhani could lose the forthcoming May election to a hardliner.

Predictions the US would cease being the guarantor of world order are premature, even if one is seeing a roll-back on liberal US values such as human rights. This means that the often unspoken notion that China may emerge as an unchallenged power in Eurasia and beyond is equally premature.

Syrian army officials inspect the damage from US missile attacks at al-Shairat Air Base in the southeastern countryside of Homs province. Photo: EPA