The BBC reported today that some Syrian troops are leaving Lebanon while others are redeploying inland and away from the Mediterranean. Could it be that the Lebanese Prime Minister’s threat to bring down his government last week affected Syria? Maybe. Did the September 3 U.N. Security Council resolution calling on Syria to pull out of Lebanon help? Again, maybe. I’m more inclined to agree with Syria’s critics who

…have dismissed the redeployment as a sham to relieve international pressure.

Lebanon, with a population of 3.6 million, shattered by 15 years of civil war, and fractured into religious enclaves, is obviously no threat to Syria. Why occupy Lebanon at all? Syria’s reasons are a mix of economic, political, and historical factors, but none can be rationalized ethically. Syria is practicing the most extreme form of realpolitik.

Occupying Lebanon is good business – legally and illegally – for Syria. It can dump its unemployed in Lebanon and they can send cash home. The Lebanese knack for commerce is still strong despite the country’s travails.

As Syria is a dictatorship, its politics are naturally driven by a desire to control everything, including the Lebanese people whom it perceives as a security threat. As Lebanon is Syria’s weakest neighbor, it is naturally top of the list for being controlled.

Early last century, the French separated mostly Christian Lebanon from mostly Muslim Syria. Historically, Damascus has never been sanguine with a distinct country of Lebanon. As usual, the tyrants want to expand their borders.

Sadly, I don’t see Syria’s dictatorship changing its long-held beliefs about Lebanon anytime soon. Today’s troop movements are a show for the United Nations. Just wait and see; members of the General Assembly and Security Council will rush forth to pat each other’s back and say, “See, we ARE effective.”