U.S. President Barack Obama does not foresee a scenario of "American boots on the ground in Syria," telling reporters Friday that it would not be good for the United States or for that county.
"As a general rule, I
don't rule things out as commander-in-chief because circumstances
change," Obama said during a joint news conference with President Laura
Chinchilla of Costa Rica, where the president stopped during a three-day
visit to the region.
"...Having said that, I
do not foresee a scenario in which boots on the ground in Syria,
American boots on the ground in Syria, would be good for America or be
good for Syria."
Obama said he has
consulted with leaders in the
region, who want to see stability return
to Syria, and "they agree with that assessment."
Even so, the president
said that if the United States confirms the use of chemical weapons by
the Syrian government against its people, "that's a game changer for
us."
He did not elaborate on
what steps would be taken, repeating as he has said previously that the
United States would wait until it has more details of evidence of
chemical weapons use in Syria before making any decision on whether to
alter strategy.
"We have evidence that chemical weapons have been used. We don't know when, where or how they were used," Obama said.
But in recent days, the
Pentagon has stepped up planning for potential military intervention in
Syria, which would most likely include the use of fighter jets and
cruise missiles, two administration officials, who were not authorized
to discuss the matter publicly made it known.
For now, Obama said, the United States is continuing its investigation, and working with its Middle East and European allies.
The president's comments
follow a number of claims in recent weeks that the Syrian government
has used chemical weapons against its people in a more than 2-year-old
civil war. The United Nations estimates some 70,000 people have died in
the fighting.
Syria had denied the use
of chemical weapons, accusing the United States of manipulating
evidence to pressure President Bashar al-Assad to step down.
Obama has been under
fire by some in the United States, including U.S. Sen. John McCain,
R-Arizona, for not taking a tougher stand with Syria.
The president said the United States is "not waiting."
"We are not standing
by," he said, adding that the United States has been the largest
contributor of humanitarian aid and nonlethal aid to the opposition.
"We are actively engaged
on a day-to-day basis to deal with this crisis to restore a Syria that
is respectful of the rights and aspirations of the Syrian people."
In addition to Syria's
possible use of chemical weapons against rebels, another concern is that
parts of the government's stockpile of chemical weapons -- which
analysts believe is one of the world's largest and includes sarin,
mustard and VX gases -- could end up, if they haven't already, in
others' hands.
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