Abdul Hakim Bashar, vice president of the Syrian Coalition, said that the United States’ policies in the region have led to unprecedented loss of confidence in its claims of advocating democracy, freedom and human rights. “Restoring this confidence needs taking concrete and qualitative steps towards serving the causes of the peoples of the region. The hesitant and impotent US policies in the region has emboldened even the smallest dictators and terrorist groups to challenge it. Moreover, the US administration’s shifting of its focus to the domestic affairs has allowed the US’s historic opponent, Russia to score a series of victories over the UN at the international level and in in the most sensitive and strategic regions, most notably in the Ukraine. Moreover, the United States made significant concessions with regard to Iran’s nuclear program through the partial lifting of the economic blockade imposed on it, while in Iraq the Iranians have the final say in appointing the rulers of this Arab country and in setting its strategic policies. In Syria, the United States has failed to live up to its promises of helping the Syrian people establish a state of law and democracy, while Russia has so far succeed in protecting the dictatorial Assad regime despite the genocidal massacres it has committed against the Syrian people. The United States has also pursued the same Russian policy in ignoring the terrorist acts of the Assad regime while making the fight against the extremist groups its top priority. The results of the mid-term elections in the United States proves the failure of the US administration’s strategy on both the domestic and external levels.” (Source: Syrian Coalition)