Robert Ford: The Empire’s Diplomatic Arsonist and the Whitewashing of Julani
I don't use words like "hate" or "despise" lightly. But there are individuals in our modern political theater whose actions warrant such condemnation—not out of emotional impulsivity, but out of moral clarity. We are not lesser for feeling hatred toward those who have inflicted unspeakable damage on entire nations. On the contrary, to remain indifferent to their deeds would be a greater failure of conscience.
Robert Ford, former U.S. Ambassador to Syria, is one such figure. For many Syrians, his name is etched into our memory not as a diplomat, but as a saboteur who cloaked his destabilizing mission under the guise of diplomacy. While diplomats are meant to represent peace, dialogue, and neutrality, Ford played a very different role—one more fitting for a provocateur or an imperial foot soldier.
In 2011, as Syria began descending into unrest, Ford made a highly publicized trip to Hama without notifying the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. That’s a basic diplomatic protocol—even adversarial states follow it. But Ford had a mission, and it wasn’t peaceful: he wanted to embolden a movement, not mediate it. His stunt echoed the actions of Victoria Nuland in Ukraine, who infamously handed out cookies to Maidan protesters. The symbolism was clear—this wasn’t about supporting democracy; it was about scripting regime change.
Ford didn’t just cheerlead the opposition. He actively pushed for a specific type of opposition—one increasingly dominated by hardline Islamist factions. He helped legitimize the most radical elements, whitewashing them as “freedom fighters” even as they called for ethnic cleansing and sectarian annihilation. This wasn’t a mistake of judgment; it was a policy choice.
Today, in 2025, we are seeing the horrifying fruits of those choices. Julani—the former al-Qaeda commander—has become Washington’s "rebranded" man in Syria. A decade ago, he was a wanted terrorist. Now, thanks to a calculated effort led by Western-backed NGOs and think tanks, he's the self-selected President of Syria. Robert Ford, unsurprisingly, is at the center of this moral charade.
Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations in Baltimore just this month, Ford admitted to being part of a British conflict resolution team tasked with rehabilitating Abu Mohammad al-Julani. He revealed that he met Julani twice between 2023 and 2024 to "train" him, with a third meeting in January 2025—this time at none other than the Presidential Palace in Damascus. The implications are staggering.
Let’s be clear: Ford, a former U.S. ambassador, now works directly with the same jihadist whose group committed atrocities across Syria and Iraq. The same Julani who oversaw the persecution of ethnic and religious minorities and implemented Taliban-style governance.
Ford isn't just a retired diplomat giving lectures at think tanks. He’s a contractor for chaos—still shaping U.S. policy, still operating in the corridors of power through institutions like the Middle East Institute and the Atlantic Council. And yes, the Middle East Institute is funded by Gulf monarchies with vested interests in destabilizing the Levant. Ford doesn’t work for peace; he works for the empire, for the oil aristocrats, and for the military-industrial complex.
There’s a word I use for journalists who serve imperial narratives: prestitutes. For people like Robert Ford, the term must be extended. He is the diplomatic equivalent of a mercenary—a man who sold his intellect and influence to perpetuate misery under the pretense of bringing change.
What we are witnessing today is not just the manipulation of geopolitical outcomes—it is the reprogramming of collective memory. We are being asked to forget Julani’s crimes, to welcome him as a “moderate” leader, all because figures like Ford have deemed it politically convenient.
I reject this narrative. We must hold these individuals accountable—not just for the destruction they helped sow, but for the audacity with which they continue to profit from it.
Robert Ford may speak fluent Arabic, but he never understood the Syrian people. If he had, he would know that no amount of diplomatic spin can wash away the blood spilled by men like Julani—or by those who empowered him.
—Kevork Almassian is a Syrian journalist, geopolitical analyst, and the founder of Syriana Analysis.
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