This is with reference to the article “No chance of reconciling with Assad” (March 10) by Abdulrahman Al-Rashed. As usual the writer has covered yet another important issue in his incisive style. I fully agree with the writer that reconciling with Syrian President Bashar Assad at this stage would not be very wise.

I have been carefully monitoring the Syrian crisis since the beginning. In the wake of the use of chemical weapons against civilians in Syria, Saudi Arabia was perhaps the only country, which had called for a solution sans Assad. Unfortunately, the international community particularly the United States apparently had some “better plans” to follow. The problem with the western powers is that they tend to heavily rely on their own intelligence, which has time and again badly let them down. They, however, refuse to learn anything from the past mistakes.

The international community should heed the advice of Saudi Arabia, which is not only the regional superpower but its experienced leadership is well-versed with the dynamics of regional politics.