US retain right to military strike against Syria - Obama
11 February 2014, 22:31
The US retain the right to conduct a military operation in Syria, but political settlement remains the priority, stated the US President Barack Obama.
'I always say that I reserve the right for it ', Obama also said that last autumn military operation was considered to be suitable. However, he said, there is only political way to settle the Syrian issue.
'There is no military solution, but the situation is very unstable, it is dangerous not only for Syria but for the entire region,' Obama said.
Obama believes Russia is guarantor of Syria fulfilling its obbligations
US President Barack Obama said Tuesday that Russia had a 'responsibility' to ensure that Syria complies with a deal to hand over its chemical weapons.
Washington has said only limited shipments of chemicals have left the Syrian port of Latakia so far - far less than the 700 tonnes the country was supposed to dispose of by the end of 2013, under a US-Russia brokered agreement.
'Syria must meet its commitments and Russia has a responsibility to ensure that Syria complies,' Obama said in a press conference with French President Francois Hollande.
Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin said last week that despite rising US reservations, things were 'moving along' with the chemical weapons deal.
The UN Security Council last year backed the US-Russian deal to destroy Syria's vast chemical arsenal as a way to avert US strikes threatened after chemical attacks near Damascus that Washington blamed on the regime.
Under the agreement, Syria's entire chemical arsenal is due to be eliminated by June 30.
Western powers accuse President Bashar al-Assad's regime of purposefully delaying the operations, while Syria stresses the challenges it faces in meeting its commitments during a time of war.
Obama says he does not see a military solution in Syria right now
US President Barack Obama said on Tuesday the United States does not see a military solution in Syria at the moment.
In a joint news conference with French President Francois Hollande, Obama also said Washington had delivered a strong message to Russia regarding the well-being of Syrian civilians in that country's civil war.
'Secretary (of State John) Kerry and others have delivered a very direct message to the Russians that they cannot say they are concerned about the well-being of the Syrian people when there are starving civilians,' Obama said.
He added: 'Right now we don't think that there is a military solution per se to the problem but the situation is fluid and we are continuing to explore every possible avenue to solve this problem.'
Obama warns against violating sanctions against Iran
President Barack Obama on Tuesday said the United States will come down like a 'ton of bricks' on businesses that violate sanctions against Iran.
Obama, speaking at a joint news conference at the White House with French President Francois Hollande, said France and other allies were committed to enforcing existing sanctions against Iran to dissuade it from furthering its nuclear program. As part of that, he cited recent US actions against companies and individuals that violated sanctions by doing business with Iran.
'They do so on their own peril right now because we will come down on them like a ton of bricks with the sanctions we control,' he said.
Hollande says trust restored with US over spying revelations
French President Francois Hollande said on Tuesday that trust had been restored between the United States and France after allegations that a US intelligence agency spied on foreign leaders and citizens.
'Mutual trust has been restored,' Hollande said at a joint news conference with US President Barack Obama. 'That mutual trust is based on respect ... but also based on protection of private life, of personal data, the fact that any individual, in spite of technological progress, can be sure he is not being spied on.'
Voice of Russia, RIA, AFP, Reuters
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
