In the 21st century the two hundred year-old propaganda that the American people control their government has been completely shattered. … Read More
‘Don’t arm maniacs’: London’s mayor opposes weapon support for Syrian rebels
Writing for British publication The Telegraph, Boris Johnson wrote that the UK must not use Syria as “an arena for muscle flexing.” “We can’t use Syria as an arena for geopolitical point-scoring or muscle-flexing, and we won’t get a ceasefire by pressing weapons into the hands of maniacs,” wrote Johnson. He joins a number of prominent British political and social figures in an attempt to dissuade Prime Minister David Cameron from sending arms to the Syrian opposition. “This is the moment for a total ceasefire, an end to the madness,” Johnson writes. “It is time for the US, Russia, the EU, Turkey, Iran, Saudi and all the players to convene an intergovernmental conference to try to halt the carnage.” Deputy PM Nick Clegg also warned Cameron of the dangers of supplying the opposition with weapons. He reasoned that the UK government had not deemed it necessary to send weapons before and saw no reason to change this policy. There has been speculation that Cameron is in favor of supporting Washington and sending weapons aid to rebels in Syria. The Obama Administration announced last week that the Syrian regime had crossed “a red line,” citing evidence that government forces had used the chemical weapon sarin in the conflict. The “intelligence community assesses that the Assad regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale against the opposition multiple times in the last year,” said Deputy National Security Adviser for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes said in a statement. Russia spoke out against the US plan to aid the rebels, saying the Kremlin was “unconvinced” by the US evidence that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces were using chemical weapons. The Syrian issue dominated bilateral talks between Moscow and London last week. Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Cameron last Monday, insisting that supplying the opposition with weapons would only serve to destabilize Syria further. Russia believes the conflict will only be brought to an end through negotiations. “I think you will not deny that one does not really need to support the people who not only kill their enemies, but open up their bodies, eat their intestines in front of the public and cameras,” Putin said, referring to a video footage on the internet of a rebel fighter apparently eating the heart of a government soldier. David Cameron, however, remains steadfast in his opinion that the root cause of the conflict is Assad. The “new evidence makes that clearer than ever,” said Cameron, citing the US’ claims of government forces using sarin gas. Washington is also reviewing the possibility of setting up a no-fly zone in Syria, US officials told Reuters. The no-fly zone would extend 40km into Syrian territory and would be used as a safe haven for refugees and a platform to train rebels. … Read More
Britain prepared for war in Syria two years before the crisis flared up, France’s former FM says
Former French Foreign Minister Roland Dumas said that Britain had been preparing gunmen to invade Syria two years before the crisis there flared up in 2011. … Read More
Kerry condemns Assad for threatening peace talks as CIA ‘prepares’ to arm rebels
The US State Department issued a statement on Saturday condemning the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad for its lack of commitment to a negotiated settlement after Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with his Iraqi counterpart the previous day. “The secretary reaffirmed that the United States continues to work aggressively for a political solution with the goal of a second Geneva meeting, but that the use of chemical weapons and increasing involvement of Hezbollah demonstrates the regime’s lack of commitment to negotiations and threatens to put a political settlement out of reach,” the department said. The statement further noted it’s appreciation for Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, who issued a June 11 statement “discouraging Iraqis from joining the fight in Syria.” Kerry, who expressed concern over the “increasingly sectarian nature of the Syrian conflict on both sides,” asked Zebari to take “every possible measure to help end the military resupply of the Assad regime and thereby increase the pressure that will be necessary to advance a political solution.” On Thursday, the Obama Administration said it would reverse US policy of not providing lethal aid to rebel fighters after claiming the Syrian government had crossed a red line by allegedly deploying chemical weapons against opposition forces on four separate occasions. Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov characterized the evidence provided by the United States regarding the use of chemical weapons by Damascus as “unconvincing.” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also warned the US against sending rebel factions in Syria the “wrong signals” with promises of increased military aid, a move which would shift their focus on “escalating the fight instead of starting a dialogue.” However, the US said the arms shipments would begin within a matter of weeks, with the CIA acting as the middleman between Washington and the opposition’s Supreme Military Council. CIA to arm rebels via Jordan, Turkey? On Saturday, the Washington Post reported that clandestine bases in Jordan and Turkey would serve as conduits for arms being delivered to the rebel fighters amidst fears American armaments would fall into the hands of Syria’s many Islamist factions. Despite concerns expressed by US intelligence officials last year, Benjamin Rhodes, Obama’s deputy national security adviser, said on Friday the US is capable of delivering arms “not only into the country,” Rhodes said, but “into the right hands.” “The Syrian puzzle has come into sharper focus in the past year, especially the makeup of various anti-regime groups,” one US official familiar with CIA assessments of the conflict told the Post on condition of anonymity. “And while the opposition remains far from monolithic, its military structures and coordination processes have improved.” Such reassurances have had little impact on the Obama administrations reticence towards providing antitank or antiaircraft weapons to rebel groups, as the initial deliveries will include light arms and other munitions. US military leaders have previously stated that tracking heavy weaponry delivered to rebel groups such as MANPADs — man-portable air-defense systems – remained unreliable. Obama’s decision to approve CIA weapons shipments could also signal green light to regional allies like Qatar and Saudi Arabia to provide such heavy weaponry despite concerns such armaments could be used against civilian aviation targets by terrorist groups. US diplomats have also intonated that Washington might impose a no-fly zone “to help Assad’s opponents.” No-fly zone looming? The Pentagon on Saturday confirmed suspicions that F-16 fighter jets and Patriot anti-missile systems which were deployed to Jordan as part of the joint 12-day Eager Lion exercise would remain in the country once the annual training event concluded. US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel “has approved a request from the Kingdom of Jordan for a detachment of F-16s and Patriot Missiles to remain in Jordan following the conclusion of the Eager Lion Exercise next week,” Reuters cites Pentagon spokesman George Little as saying in a statement. “All other US personnel assigned to Jordan for Eager Lion will depart at the conclusion of the exercise,” the statement continued. Lavrov said that any attempt to enforce a no-fly zone over Syria using the F-16s and missile batteries would be in clear violation of international law. “There have been leaks from Western media regarding the serious consideration to create a no-fly zone over Syria through the deployment of Patriot anti-aircraft missiles and F-16 jets in Jordan,” Lavrov said. “You don’t have to be a great expert to understand that this will violate international law,” Russia’s top diplomat continued. Washington’s willingness for more direct engagement in the Syrian conflict comes ahead of the Geneva II peace conference set for July. … Read More
Moscow slams US claims of Assad chemical weapon use
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Syria’s war: US to give military support to rebels as ‘red line’ crossed
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Syria crossed ‘red line’ using chemical weapons on rebels – White House
An internal memorandum circulating within the Obama administration has assessed that chemical weapons, most likely the nerve gas sarin, were used multiple times in battle against the Syrian rebels. The “intelligence community assesses that the Assad regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale against the opposition multiple times in the last year,” according to that memo, as cited by The New York Times. White House officials speculated over evidence that nerve gas had been used as of April, but that evidence is now being called “definitive” – with Congressional sources describing the conclusion as crossing the “red line” for US military intervention as previously defined by the president. According to officials who spoke with the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, the US military is currently considering a proposal for arming factions of the Syrian insurgency – as well as establishing a limited no-fly zone over the country to be enforced from nearby Jordanian territory. That no-fly zone could stretch for up to 25 miles into Syrian territory, and would be set up in a bid to train and equip rebel forces and protect refugees, officials said. A no-fly zone would not require the destruction of Syrian antiaircraft batteries, according to the accounts cited in American media. The White House could alternatively authorize the arming and training of the Syrian opposition in Jordan without a no-fly zone. Congress was being notified of the conclusions over chemical weapons use in the country on Thursday in classified documents. Findings were corroborated by evidence sent to the US by France, which along with Britain claimed that Assad’s forces had used chemical weapons. In a conference call to reporters on Thursday, the White House said that the intelligence community estimates that as many as 150 people, or about 0.16 per cent (0.0016) of the 93,000 reported deaths in the Syrian conflict, could have been a result of chemical weapons used by pro-Assad forces. The White House said during the same call that the US “will make decisions on our own timeline” regarding the next steps on Syria. President Obama will consult with G8 partners, including Russia, about Syria next week. Republican senators John McCain and Lindsay Graham called on the US to provide “lethal assistance, especially ammunition & heavy weapons” to Syria’s rebels on Thursday. “The President must rally an international coalition to take military actions to degrade Assad’s ability to use airpower and ballistic missiles and to move and resupply his forces around the battlefield by air,” said a joint statement by the pair. As a UN probe was underway into allegations of chemical weapons use in May, lead investigator Carla Del Ponte said the findings showed that rebels were behind at least one chemical weapons attack. “This was used on the part of the opposition, the rebels, not by the government authorities,” Del Ponte told Swiss TV. … Read More
