Might chemical weapons proposal strengthen Syria’s President Assad?

Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad (Source: Agência Brasil, Wikipedia)

Some believe that the current discussions about giving up chemical weapons will strengthen Syria’s President Assad:

11 September 2013

WASHINGTON — Pursuing a diplomatic resolution that would allow President Bashar Assad to surrender Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles runs the risk of extending his stay in power and undercutting support of rebels who have been fighting his regime with U.S. support, some analysts say.

“Assad is going to come out of this stronger,” said Flynt Leverett, a former National Security Council official who is now a professor at Penn State.

Instead of an attack that could weaken Syria’s military, particularly its ability to use chemical weapons, negotiations with Assad’s government could strengthen the Syrian leader, Leverett and others say.

No deal has been struck yet and the United States could still go ahead with a planned cruise missile strike if no agreement is reached, President Obama said in an address to the country Tuesday night…

The process of removing Assad’s chemical weapons could take years, giving Assad and his Russian allies time. The destruction of Libya’s main chemical stockpiles were only completed this year, nearly 10 years after Moammar Gadhafi said he would relinquish his nuclear program and chemical weapons stockpiles.

During that time, Assad will likely be able to continue battling rebels while dealing with weapons inspectors and attempting to consolidate his power.

“In a sense it gives the regime permission to fire as much as it wants” if it doesn’t use chemical weapons, said Jeffrey White, an analyst at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and a former Defense Intelligence Agency official. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/09/11/syria-libya-putin-lavrov-chemical/2795941/

September 11, 2013

Russian news agencies report that Moscow has given the United States its plan for securing Syria’s chemical weapons ahead of a meeting Thursday in Geneva between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart…

U.S. President Barack Obama, in a speech Tuesday, referred to the Russian proposal and Syria’s reported agreement as “encouraging signs,” but also stressed that the U.S. military would be ready to respond if diplomacy fails.

Obama has warned he could launch a “limited” military strike on the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to punish it for allegedly carrying out a chemical attack in Damascus last month. Assad blames the attack on rebels.

Under a potential U.S.-Russian deal, Assad’s government would surrender its chemical weapons to the United Nations to have them destroyed, and the United States would freeze its plans for military action.

Obama said he asked Congress to postpone a vote authorizing military action against Syria to let the diplomatic initiatives play out.

Iran and China, which have opposed outside military intervention in Syria, expressed optimism about the diplomatic path on Wednesday.

But, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, an Assad ally, also cast doubt about Western intentions.

“The latest developments, if they can be taken seriously, show that they [United States and its allies] have stepped back from the inconsiderate and mistaken actions that they had taken in the past few weeks. We hope this [turnabout] is indeed serious,” said Ayatollah Khamenei .

Turkish President Abdullah Gul, whose government strongly opposes Assad, said the diplomatic efforts should focus on more than just “cleaning up” Syria’s chemical weapons.

“This is not only a problem of chemical weapons. The United States should not consider this only as a matter of chemical weapons. There is a civil war in this country where more than 100,000 people have been brutally killed,” said Gul…

“The basic question about [the] Russian initiative is, can you trust [the] words of Syrian officials, or not? Unfortunately, Russian leader Vladimir Putin had a rather bad story with two leaders of specific countries – [the late North Korean leader] Kim Jong Il and [former Iranian president] Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Putin met each of them, received the promises he wanted, and the next day both of these men said they were misunderstood and joking,” said Golts.

Challenging process

Any disposal of Syria’s chemical weapons also would face practical obstacles, said international security expert Joanna Kidd of London’s King’s College.

Syria is believed to have 1,000 tons of highly toxic agents, spread over 60 locations, in the midst a civil war that has claimed 100,000 lives and displaced one-third of the population.

“It is a job that would take several months to do. And of course, one should not forget that obviously there is a civil war that would greatly complicate the process,” Kidd said. http://www.voanews.com/content/russia-hands-us-its-plan-for-syrian-diplomacy/1747861.html

11 September 2013

“It’s simply too early to begin, from here, to pinpoint what must be in the United Nations Security Council resolution beyond a verifiable process for removing chemical weapons from Assad’s control into international control,” White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters.

Given the serious challenge of verifiably removing chemical weapons from a war-torn nation, Carney said “Syria would have to keep any commitment it made to allow for this process and to facilitate this process.” Russia, he added, as the nation that first proposed the plan for Syria to hand over its chemical weapons, “would have to engage directly in verifying and making it happen.”

While Carney said the Obama administration is “not interested in delaying tactics,” he did acknowledge that the negotiations “obviously will take some time.” http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57602480/white-house-syria-chemical-weapons-agreement-must-be-verifiable/

One of the many ways that the current proposal benefits the Assad regime is that it hurts the momentum that seemed to be starting to build in the Syrian opposition a couple of weeks ago when some were allegedly told that the West (USA) was about to bomb in a few days (Reuters: West may strike Syria within days). Now, this potential bombing has already been delayed for a couple of weeks, and more delays seem likely at this stage.

The Bible teaches:

11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. (Ecclesiastes 8:11, KJV)

And while I am not advocating USA military involvement in the chemical weapons’ matter, if sending bombs is something that the USA intends to do, delaying doing so will make the USA look weak in the eyes of many. Yet, it will also look hypocritical if it starts dropping bombs now–it was US Secretary of State Kerry who publicly suggested that the USA would not bomb if Syria turned over all of its chemical weapons arsenal in a week. Of course, that was about a week ago, but the USA would be loathe now to attack this soon (especially after Barack Obama’s speech last night).

I should probably also mention that the USA will ultimately not like the changes that will happen in Syria. Eventually Syria, and others in the Middle East and North Africa, will plot to eliminate the USA based upon the 83rd Psalm. Because Syria is expected to be part of the conspirators in Psalm 83, as well as a supporter of the future King of the South (Daniel 11:40-43) and aligned with Egypt per Ezekiel 30:1-9, I have been certain for quite some time that the situation in Syria would change. Either Bashar Assad will change, die, or be exiled.

Iran, Syria’s closest ally, is also in the process of attempting to negotiate what seems to be further delays in order to possibly pursue its nuclear ambitions (Iran’s President want nuclear talks). While negotiations can be fine, some countries have been known to use them as delaying tactics. Many suspect that both Syria and Iran are doing that. We will see.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Damascus and Syria in Prophecy Will Bashar Assad hold power as he has it? Does the Bible show that Damascus, the capital of Syria, will be destroyed? What will happen to Syria? Will the Syrians support the final King of the South that the Bible tells will rise up? Which scriptures discuss the rise and fall of an Arabic confederation? Does Islamic prophecy predict the destruction of Syria. This is a YouTube video.
The Arab World In the Bible, History, and Prophecy The Bible discusses the origins of the Arab world and discusses the Middle East in prophecy. What is ahead for the Middle East and those who follow Islam? What does Islam teach about the Imam Mahdi?
Is the Future King of the South Rising Up? Some no longer believe there needs to be a future King of the South. Might Egypt, Islam, Iran, Arabs, or Ethiopia be involved? Might this King be called the Mahdi or Caliph? What does the Bible say?
The Future King of the South is Rising Does the Bible teach that there will be a future King of the South in Daniel 11? Is this kingdom rising up now? Did the old Worldwide Church of God (WCG) teach that there would be another one? And who is the King of the South? How will this involve Egypt? Is the final King of the South some type of Arab-Muslim confederation? Can Iran be involved? Is there a group that seems to be supporting the goals of the King of the South? Has the Obama Administration supported the rise of this power? This is a YouTube video.
The Muslim Brotherhood and the Rise of the King of the South The Bible tells of the formation of a power of nations that are in the Middle East and North Africa that are part of the final “King of the South” (Daniel 11:40-43) The Muslim Brotherhood wishes to have an Islamic empire with basically the same nations. This YouTube video explains what to expect from such a confederation.
Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse What do each of the four horseman of the Apocalypse represent? Have they began their ride? Did Jesus discuss the any of this? Might their rides coincide with the “beginning of sorrows? Do they start their ride prior to the Great Tribulation? Did Nostradamus or any other ‘private prophets’ write predictions that may mislead people so that they may not understand the truth of one or more of the four horseman? There is also a related YouTube video titled The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse What is the pale horse of death and pestilences? What will it bring and when? Spanish: El cuarto jinete de Apocalipsis, el caballo pálido de muerte y pestilencia.
Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Edition for Second Obama Term This is a 160 page book for people truly interested in prophecies related to Barack Obama and the United States, including learning about many that have already been fulfilled (which the book documents in detail) and those that will be fulfilled in the future. It also has a chapter about a Republican choice. This book is available to order at www.barackobamaprophecy.com. The physical book can also be purchased at Amazon from the following link: Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States: Is Barack Obama Fulfilling Biblical, Islamic Catholic, Kenyan, and other America-Related Prophecies? What About Republican Leaders? Second Edition for Second Obama Term.
Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Term-Amazon Kindle edition. This electronic version is available for only US$2.99. And you do not need an actual Kindle device to read it. Why? Amazon will allow you to download it to almost any device: Please click HERE to download one of Amazon s Free Reader Apps. After you go to for your free Kindle reader and then go to Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Term-Amazon Kindle edition.