Sunday, September 1, 2013
Military Action
Obama urges military action against Syria, but will seek Congress' OK
August 31, 2013 -- Updated 2347 GMT (0747 HKT)
Obama seeks military action in Syria
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: Obama sends a letter to the heads of the House and Senate
- U.N. inspectors' report on chemical weapons could take weeks
- Obama to seek congressional approval on military action against Syria
- Aim is to determine whether CW were used, not by whom, says U.N. spokesman
Obama's letter to the
heads of the House and Senate came hours after the U.S. president
announced he would seek congressional approval for military action in
Syria over the alleged use of chemical weapons.
It's a key step that is set to turn an international crisis into a domestic political battle.
The proposed legislation
asks Congress to approve the use of military force "to deter, disrupt,
prevent and degrade the potential for future uses of chemical weapons or
other weapons of mass destruction."
In a televised address
from the White House Rose Garden earlier Saturday, the president
appealed for members of Congress to consider their responsibilities and
values in debating U.S. military action over Syria's alleged chemical
weapons use.
"Today I'm asking Congress to send a message to the world that we are united as one nation," he said.
Obama said top congressional leaders had agreed to schedule a debate when the body returns to Washington on September 9.
Obama's remarks came
shortly after U.N. inspectors left Syria, carrying evidence that will
determine whether chemical weapons were used in an attack early last
week in a Damascus suburb.
"The aim of the game
here, the mandate, is very clear -- and that is to ascertain whether
chemical weapons were used -- and not by whom," U.N. spokesman Martin
Nesirky told reporters on Saturday.
But who used the weapons
in the reported toxic gas attack in a Damascus suburb on August 21 has
been a key point of global debate over the Syrian crisis.
Top U.S. officials have
said there's no doubt that the Syrian government was behind it, while
Syrian officials have denied responsibility and blamed jihadists
fighting with the rebels.
British and U.S.
intelligence reports say the attack involved chemical weapons, but U.N.
officials have stressed the importance of waiting for an official report
from inspectors.
The inspectors will
share their findings with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Ban, who
has said he wants to wait until the U.N. team's final report is
completed before presenting it to the U.N. Security Council.
The Organization for the
Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which nine of the inspectors belong
to, said Saturday that it could take up to three weeks to analyze the
evidence they collected.
"It needs time to be able to analyze the information and the samples," Nesirky said.
He noted that Ban has
repeatedly said there is no alternative to a political solution to the
crisis in Syria, and that "a military solution is not an option."
Obama: 'This menace must be confronted'
Obama's senior advisers
have debated the next steps to take, and the president's comments
Saturday came amid mounting political pressure over the situation in
Syria. Some U.S. lawmakers have called for immediate action while others
warn of stepping into what could become a quagmire.
Some global leaders have
expressed support, but the British Parliament's vote against military
action earlier this week was a blow to Obama's hopes of getting strong
backing from key NATO allies.
On Saturday, Obama
proposed what he said would be a limited military action against Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad. "This attack is an assault on human dignity,"
the president said, referring to the toxic gas assault. "It also
presents a serious danger to our national security; it risks making a
mockery of the global prohibition on the use of chemical weapons."
Obama worried aloud that
a failure to respond with force "could lead to escalating use of
chemical weapons or their proliferation to terrorist groups who would do
our people harm. In a world with many dangers, this menace must be
confronted."
Any military attack would be neither open-ended nor include U.S. ground forces, he said.
Though he said he
believes he has the authority to carry out military action without
specific congressional authorization, Obama was seeking it because "I
know that the country will be stronger if we take this course of action
and our actions will be even more effective. We should have this debate
because our interests are too big for business as usual."
Obama decision came Friday night
Obama had been wrestling
with the idea of the proper role of Congress in the matter all week,
senior administration officials said.
On Friday night, the president made his decision to consult lawmakers.
There was a robust
debate among Obama's senior advisers over whether that was the right
move, the officials said. All the advisers who disagreed with the
president now support his decision, the officials said.
Obama on Saturday continued to shore up support for a strike on the al-Assad government.
He spoke by phone with French President Francois Hollande before his Rose Garden speech Saturday, the officials said.
"The two leaders agreed
that the international community must deliver a resolute message to the
Assad regime -- and others who would consider using chemical weapons --
that these crimes are unacceptable and those who violate this
international norm will be held accountable by the world," the White
House said.
Meanwhile, as uncertainty loomed over how Congress would weigh in, U.S. military officials said they remained at the ready.
"We continue to refine
our targeting based on the most recent intelligence," said Col. Edward
Thomas, spokesman for General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the U.S. Joint
Chiefs of Staff.
Reactions mixed to Obama's speech
A spokesman for the Syrian National Coalition said that the opposition group was disappointed by Obama's announcement.
"Our fear now is that
the lack of action could embolden the regime and they repeat his attacks
in a more serious way," said spokesman Louay Safi. "So we are quite
concerned."
Some members of Congress applauded Obama's decision.
House Speaker John
Boehner, Majority Leader Eric Cantor, Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy and
Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, all Republicans, issued a
statement Saturday praising the president
"Under the Constitution, the responsibility to declare war lies with Congress," their statement said.
"We are glad the
president is seeking authorization for any military action in Syria in
response to serious, substantive questions being raised. In consultation
with the president, we expect the House to consider a measure the week
of September 9th. This provides the president time to make his case to
Congress and the American people."
More than 160
legislators, including 63 of Obama's fellow Democrats, had signed
letters calling for either a vote or at least a "full debate" before any
U.S. action.
British Prime Minister
David Cameron, whose own attempt to get lawmakers in his country to
support military action in Syria failed earlier this week, responded to
Obama's speech in a Twitter post Saturday.
"I understand and support Barack Obama's position on Syria," Cameron said.
An influential Russian lawmaker had his own theory.
"The main reason Obama
is turning to the Congress: the military operation did not get enough
support either in the world, among allies of the US or in the United
States itself," Alexei Pushkov, chairman of the international-affairs
committee of the Russian State Duma, said in a Twitter post.
Syria's government unfazed
After Obama's speech, a
military and political analyst on Syrian state TV said Obama is
"embarrassed" that Russia opposes military action against Syria, is
"crying for help" for someone to come to his rescue and is facing two
defeats -- on the political and military levels.
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 during a meeting with
a delegation of Syrian expatriates from Italy, according to a banner on
Syria State TV that was broadcast prior to Obama's address.
The Syrian government
has denied that it used chemical weapons in the August 21 attack, saying
that jihadists fighting with the rebels used them in an effort to turn
global sentiments against it.
British intelligence had put the number of people killed in the attack at more than 350.
On Saturday, Obama said
"all told, well over 1,000 people were murdered." U.S. Secretary of
State John Kerry on Friday cited a death toll of 1,429, more than 400 of
them children. No explanation was offered for the discrepancy.
Syrian Foreign Minister
Walid Moallem said rockets carrying chemical payloads landed in areas
held by Syria's own troops. Why would his government gas its own
soldiers? he asked.
Not true, Kerry said Friday.
"We know rockets came
only from regime-controlled areas and went only to opposition-controlled
or contested neighborhoods," he said.
Russia reacts
A year ago, Obama said
that such an attack by the Syrian regime would cross a "red line," which
he would not tolerate, but as he mulls military options, he is facing
resistance.
Russia, which has a
permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council, has said it would block any
measure that includes military force against its ally, Syria.
Obama accused the U.N. Security Council of being unable to "move in the face of a clear violation of international norms."
The assertion that the
Syrian government used chemical weapons "is utter nonsense," Russian
President Vladimir Putin told reporters Saturday, state media reported.
He told the Russian
state news agency Ria Novosti that he had seen no proof that al-Assad's
government was behind any chemical weapons attacks.
"Claims that the proof
exists, but is classified and cannot be presented to anybody are below
criticism," Putin said. "This is plain disrespect for their partners."
Putin said he was hoping to take up the matter with Obama during the upcoming G20 summit in Russia's Saint Petersburg next weekSource:CNN News International Tags:
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