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Aaron Hesse is a foreign policy professional living in Washington, D.C. Mr. Hesse is the political affairs officer for the Lebanese Information Center, a non-partisan, non-profit research group. He is also a Joseph S. Nye Jr. National Security Research Intern with the Center for a New American Security. Prior to these jobs, Mr. Hesse worked with the Syrian American Council as a policy analyst and researcher. Mr. Hesse has a strong background in U.S. foreign policy and nuclear security policy, and has written extensively on the Syrian conflict, the Iranian nuclear program, U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, and the geopolitical ramifications of widespread nuclear proliferation. In 2012, Mr. Hesse attained his Master’s degree in international relations from the American University in Cairo.
Recent Russian activity in Syria is not about combating the Islamic State, despite Russian claims to the contrary. Though actively fighting ISIS and thus propagating its long-stated goal of keeping Assad in power would seem to be the straightforward explanation for Russia’s recent behavior, the fact that Russian strikes are also hitting U.S.-backed, rebel-held areas demonstrates the hollowness of official discourse.
