NOVANEWS
President Obama is determined to send the Syrian Government and the rest of the world a message about chemical weapons.
WASHINGTON, DC – Obama (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Editorial
By Shepard Ambellas
WASHINGTON — As things heat up with the Syrian chemical weapons situation, we notice the same rhetoric that got us into all of the other illegal wars. As you likely remember, they have previously told us things like, ‘don’t worry, we won’t send any troops in’, or ‘we will not be there too long’, and then there was the weapons of mass destruction story former President George W. Bush, told so well. However, now in 2013, people just aren’t buying it.
In fact, recently Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Foreign Ministry even chimed in. Will England reported, “The Foreign Ministry said a U.S. attack would be a “gross violation” of international law.
Speaking out for the first time since an alleged chemical weapons attack near Damascus on Aug. 21, Putin called on President Obama to find a nonviolent way out of the crisis.
“I would like to address Obama as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate: Before using force in Syria, it would be good to think about future casualties,” Putin told Russian news agencies in Vladivostok during a tour of the country’s flood-stricken Far East.
“Russia is urging you to think twice before making a decision on an operation in Syria,” he said.”[1]
President Obama stated in a White House press meeting Saturday, “The world has an obligation to make sure that we maintain a norm against the use of chemical weapons”. Obama continued by adding, “We are not considering any open-ended commitments. We are not considering any boot on the ground approach”.
According to a recent CNN.com piece, “Syria’s prime minister appeared unfazed by the saber-rattling. “The Syrian Army’s status is on maximum readiness and fingers are on the trigger to confront all challenges,” Wael Nader al-Halqi said Saturday during a meeting with a delegation of Syrian expatriates from Italy, according to a banner on Syria State TV.
But planning for a possible military response is well under way in Washington. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, Vice President Joe Biden and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin E. Dempsey arrived Saturday morning at the White House.
Obama said he’s determined to hold Syria accountable for what U.S. intelligence experts have concluded were chemical weapons attacks against Syrian civilians.”[2]
Expect the situation to escalate as the U.S. seems pre-determined to strike Syria.
Sources:
[1] Russia sharply steps up criticism of U.S. over Syria –WashingTonPost.com
[2] Syrian samples to be tested for chemical weapons as Obama weighs military action – CNN.com
