Obama commits US to deeper involvement in Syrian civil war

In a major foreign policy speech at United States Military Academy at West Point Wednesday, President Barack Obama spoke of a critical focus on the Syria crisis, to which he would devote “additional resources.” He said that he believed he had made the right decision not to put American troops into the middle of “this increasingly sectarian” civil war. “But that does not mean we shouldn’t help the Syrian people stand up against a dictator who bombs and starves his people.And in helping those who fight for the right of all Syrians to choose their own future,” Obama stressed, “we also push back against the growing number of extremists who find safe-haven in the chaos.“ The most direct threat to the US and world is from terrorism. The president pledged to work with Congress to ramp up support for those in the Syrian opposition who offer the best alternative to terrorists and a brutal dictator.”
See DEBKAfile of May 27 for previous disclosures of Obama’s program for Syria.