With the further escalation of the situation in Syria, a growing number of countries have recalled their ambassadors from Damascus. On Tuesday, the Netherlands did the same, but was it a good idea?

For months, the Syrian government has been using armed force to crush a widespread uprising. It has come down especially hard on Homs and the city has been under fire for days. Dozens of civilians have been killed in bombardments carried out by troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad.

On Monday, the United States closed its embassy in Damascus, citing security reasons. The ambassador was recalled to Washington for talks. Then, Great Britain, France, Italy and Spain withdrew their ambassadors at least for the time being. The six Arab states in the Persian Gulf have recalled their ambassadors in protest at the “mass slaughter of Syrian civilians”.

Symbolic
The Netherlands joined in the diplomatic protest on Tuesday. Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal explained that he saw the move as using all means available to put pressure on the Assad government. The Dutch embassy is remaining open, primarily to keep in touch with the Syrian opposition and with Dutch nationals still in the country.

Koos van Dam is a former Dutch ambassador to countries including Iraq, Egypt and Indonesia and has written a book about Syria. He sees the withdrawal of ambassadors as a political gesture:

“Of course, it’s mostly symbolic, not something which will improve the situation. Withdrawing the ambassadors won’t bring a cessation of violence, political reform and the departure of the regime any nearer. On the other hand, you can say that an ambassador is there to act as a sort of link with the government. If you want to call on the authorities to do something, it seems to me that it’s vitally important you can communicate with them. But that’s exactly what we can’t do now.”

Dialogue
Mr Van Dam puts a high value on dialogue. Western countries have, however, thrown away the opportunity for this by actually seeking out contact with the Syrian opposition. He is pinning his hope on Russia’s attempts to persuade the Syrian government to change its approach. Russia is a traditional ally of Syria. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held talks with President al-Assad in Damascus on Tuesday.

Civil war
Mr Van Dam asks himself whether either side – government or opposition – would really be willing to suspend the fighting. He fears a civil war.

Groups like Sunni and Alawi Muslims could end up opposing each other in a civil war. “And that would be really destructive.” Mr Van Dam thinks it important that the Alawis, who at present support the al-Assad government, come to understand that they will not be under threat if reforms are introduced. Democratic reforms will, though, inevitably lead the departure of the present leadership. “That’s why they don’t want to know.”

(mw/rk/imm)