In order to help the Syrian people, concerned nations are going to have to convince Russia first, which is what Hillary Clinton and other world leaders are convening in New York on Tuesday to do. The Guardian reports the Clinton, along with Britain's William Hague and France's Alain Juppé, are going to be part of UN Security Council talks to end the Syrian violence. Numbers are fuzzy but there seems to be around 100 persons killed since Sunday. The leaders will vote on a resolution to get Bashar al Assad to relinquish power.

The vote on the resolution is expected on Thursday, but as The Guardian notes, much of that time between now and then will be spent trying to convince Russia that this is a good thing. Russia has been Syria's strongest ally in the Security Council, stating last week that the resolution to throw al Assad out of power, "crosses our red lines."  Of course, the $4 billion Russia makes from supplying to arms to Syria along with the $20 billion of Russian business in Syria helps make those red lines stronger.  Russia also vetoed a previous resolution attempt in October, which is probably why a lot of Wednesday will be "aimed at finding a compromise formula acceptable to Russia."

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at aabadsantos at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.
Alexander Abad-Santos