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Senators: Peace plan in Syria has failed
Three senators who have called for more U.S. action in Syria said Thursday that the peace plan in Syria has failed, and it was time for a military response.
Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Joe Lieberman (I-Ct.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) issued a joint statement Thursday that called on the Obama administration to recognize the peace plan from UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan had failed, as President Bashar al-Assad’s forces have not kept a ceasefire.
"Assad’s campaign of violence will continue, as it has for more than a year now, until the military balance inside the country shifts against him," the senators said Thursday. "Until then, the killing will only increase, and diplomacy will continue to fail."
Assad had agreed to the peace plan proposed by Annan and backed by the UN Security Council, but the ceasefire that took effect last week has not appeared to hold.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said Thursday that Syria is not keeping the truce as reports of violence continue.
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said at a hearing on Syria Thursday that the Obama administration is still committed to a diplomatic solution to the Syrian conflict, although the Pentagon is preparing contingency plans for military options.
The senators said that the international community is not recognizing the reality on the ground that Assad will not stop the violence, and by not acting it is “only enabling Assad to continue killing.”
“The only way to stop Assad’s campaign of slaughter is for the United States to take tangible steps with our friends and allies to help the Syrian opposition change the military balance of power on the ground,” they wrote.
Lieberman and McCain visited a Syrian refugee camp on the Turkish border, and met with leaders of the opposition last week. They said many people there believe the United States needs to play a leading role in mobilizing the international community and providing lethal assistance.
Other Republican senators, however, are more reluctant to get involved militarily in Syria. At a hearing on the subject Thursday, Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) said the Obama administration needed to “remain skeptical” about using military force in Syria.
“If the United States or other western nations insert themselves too deeply into this conflict, it could backfire and give credence to the Syrian regime's claim that outside influences are the source of their troubles,” Lugar said.
