Obama will not arm Syrian rebels; Romney sees a 'lack of leadership'
By Amie Parnes and Jeremy Herb - 05/30/12 12:55 AM EDT
President Obama and Mitt Romney on Tuesday offered clashing views over whether to arm insurgents in Syria after a weekend massacre left more than 100 people dead and drew international condemnation.
Romney called for the United States and partner nations to “arm the opposition so they can defend themselves” against the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad, but White House press secretary Jay Carney warned that would lead to more “chaos and carnage” and was “not the right course.”
The deep divide highlighted the realpolitik approach in Syria favored by an Obama administration focused on convincing Syrian ally Russia to pressure Assad and concerned about where weapons intended for insurgents might end up.
It also offered an opening of sorts for Romney — who clinched the Republican nomination on Tuesday night — to hammer Obama on foreign policy, which has been one of the president’s biggest strengths during his time in office.
As violence in Syria has escalated, Romney has ramped up his attacks on Obama’s handling of the events.
“President Obama’s lack of leadership has resulted in a policy of paralysis that has watched Assad slaughter 10,000 individuals,” Romney said in a statement Tuesday on Syria, his second in three days.
Observers say the conflict in Syria provides “fertile ground” for Romney and other Republicans.
But on Tuesday, the White House — seemingly aware of a war-weary American public — didn’t appear to want to engage militarily in the conflict.
Instead, Carney said, the Obama administration would continue to give a peace plan by U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan support and “hope the pressure on Assad has an effect.”
At the same time, Carney added, “We will continue to work with both the Security Council and the broader coalition of friends of Syria to place pressure on the Assad regime.”
When it comes to arming the rebels, there are concerns in Congress in both parties about who the opposition is and whether al Qaeda is involved, although those concerns have dissipated somewhat as the violence has increased.
The administration still has some diplomatic levers it can pull, including further sanctions against Syria to try to stanch its cash flow. On Tuesday, the United States expelled the top Syrian envoy to Washington as part of a coordinated effort by countries around the world.
Observers say Obama will keep up the diplomatic approach as long as he is able.
Romney’s call for arming the rebels is just one step that could be taken to try to put pressure on Assad, and other, more hawkish Republicans have called for more action.
The Republican presidential nominee has not endorsed calls from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the party’s 2008 presidential nominee, to launch air strikes as part of an international campaign to give the opposition safe zones within Syria.
Rubin, who supports more action in Syria, said that Romney’s stance on arming the rebels feels like a political move.
“Romney’s policy is simply probably going to be to do the opposite of whatever Obama is doing,” Rubin said. “This election isn’t about foreign policy, and Romney is going to be a foreign-policy opportunist — not leading, but sniping from behind.”
Even McCain and other hawks say that the United States should not be committing troops on the ground in Syria, and that allied countries like neighboring Turkey should proovide the forces if necessary.
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Obama will not arm Syrian rebels; Romney sees a 'lack of leadership' | TheHill
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