September 5, 2013

Russian President Vladimir Putin opened the G20 group of nations summit in Saint Petersburg, Russia, today, stating that Syria would be discussed at a dinner later tonight, despite the fact that Syria is not formally on the agenda. United States President Barack Obama is seeking international support for military strikes against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in response to alleged chemical weapons attacks on Syrian civilians. Russia and China have warned the United States not to take action without the backing of the United Nations Security Council. However, Russia and China have consistently vetoed attempts to bring pressure on Assad by the Security Council. Both have insisted that any solution to the Syrian civil war must be political.

In a surprising development, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced today that military action against Syria would be one of the topics discussed at the opening G20 dinner in St. Petersburg (AP/Wide World).

Yesterday, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 10 to 7 in favor of granting the formal military authorization for the strikes in Syria requested by President Obama. The vote paves the way for a full vote on the floor of the Senate next week. Before the vote, the committee accepted amendments proposed by Senator John McCain (R., Arizona) that explicitly call for the United States to seek to “change the momentum of the battlefield” in ways that would force Assad to resign. The amendment reads in part: “It is the policy of the United States to . . . create favorable conditions for a negotiated settlement that ends the conflict and leads to a democratic government in Syria. A comprehensive U.S. strategy in Syria should aim . . .  to degrade the capabilities of the Assad regime to use weapons of mass destruction while upgrading the lethal and non-lethal military capabilities of vetted elements of Syrian opposition forces, including the Free Syrian Army.” (The Free Syrian Army is the most moderate of the armed rebel groups operating in Syria since the start of the civil war; among other groups, the terrorist organization al-Qa`idain Iraq is known to have moved forces into Syria.)

Arizona Senator John McCain added amendments to the Senate resolution granting President Obama authorization for military strikes in Syria. The amendments call for a "change in the momentum of the battlefield" to force Assad's resignation. (U.S. Senate).

Political experts note that the U.S. House of Representatives—with its deep and persistent divisions amongst legislators, both liberal and conservative—is unlikely to pass the resolution as amended by Senator McCain. Many liberal members are afraid that military strikes might lead to a greater involvement in the conflict. Many House conservatives are either isolationists or fear that any further military intervention in the Middle East would add to deficit spending, pushing up the national debt.

Additional World Book articles:

• Arab Spring
• Chemical Weapons Convention
• Celebrating the City of the Czars (a special report)
• The Middle East: From Fall to Spring (a special report)
• Syria: The Roots of Rebellion (a special report)
• Syria 2011 (a Back in Time article)
• Syria 2012 (a Back in Time article)