Erkan in the Army now...: Syria roundup: Strike delayed, Turkish Foreign Ministry must be so upset…

Obama not ready to order Syria strike but gives up on UN U.S. President Barack Obama said he had not yet signed off on a plan to strike Syria Turkey: Willing for the coalition The chemical weapon attack in Syria caught the world’s attention ‘No 100% certainty’ on responsibility for Syria chemical attack: British PM Cameron told parliamen that he was convinced the Syrian regime was behind a chemical weapons attack but admitted there was no ’100-percent certainty’ Inside the battle for Assad’s heartland Anti-government fighters battle Alawites in Syria’s northwestern Latakia province in an increasingly sectarian war.   500+ AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (IN DEPTH) 1d  //  keep unread  //  preview  //  trash What can UN investigators find in Syria? The delay in accessing the alleged chemical weapons attack site could make the UN inspectors’ investigation difficult. The Case for Doing Nothing in Syria I was in a meeting recently in Washington with a whole bunch of important people, when I heard a chilling phrase: Obama had “no good options” in Syria. It’s become a cliché. Aaron David Miller in a CNN commentary said there were “no good options” for dealing with the situation. Michael Tomasky of the Daily Beast wonders if bombing Syria is America’s “best bad option.” In Syria, U.S. credibility is at stake What does the world look like when people begin to doubt the credibility of U.S. power? Unfortunately, we’re finding that out in Syria and other nations where leaders have concluded they can defy a war-weary United States without paying a price. The U.S. Has No Legal Basis to Intervene in Syria Inter arma enim silent leges, said the Romans—in times of war, the law falls silent. But ours is a chattier society. Rather than keep silent, our laws speak loudly about war. We just don’t follow them—as the U.S. military intervention in Syria is about to show. Syria upends Obama’s plans abroad President Obama surely didn’t want to offer his commemoration of the 1963 March on Washington and Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech on a day dominated by rumors of war. An armed conflict with the Syrian government, even of limited duration, was never part of Obama’s dream. Mass slaughter of civilian Kurds in Syria ignites heavy clashes and mass exodus The al-Qaeda linked “Jabhat al-Nusra” (al-Nusra Front) in Syria, stands accused of instigating a sectarian racist war against civilian Kurds in Syria’s northern Kurdish region, one that is escalating rapidly.   Turkey wants ‘to contribute to the establishment of a new Syria’ Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has said Turkey’s aid to the Syrian people was based on the “responsibility to contribute to the foundation of a new Syria” Assad says Syria will defend itself against aggression Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Thursday that Syria would defend itself against any aggression MAIN FOCUS: US gets ready for Syria intervention | 28/08/2013 A week after the alleged toxic gas attack in Syria, the US and its allies are pushing ahead with preparations for a military intervention against the Assad regime. According to reports in the media, the air strikes may begin as soon as Thursday. Commentators criticise that the West, wary of serious intervention via a UN protective force, is just trying to soothe its conscience with the move. UK puts forward Syria UN proposal The UK puts a proposal for a resolution to the five permanent members of the UN Security Council “authorising all necessary measures to protect civilians” in Syria. Syria: the pace quickens — but towards what? Soon, military action against the Assad regime by western powers may be all but inevitable. But what kind of action, for what purpose, in the service of what larger strategy?   3 Open Europe blog by Open Europe blog team  /  1d  //  keep unread  //  preview  //  trash Syria: Who’s in and who’s out? * Plenty to ponder over Syria Following the alleged use of chemical weapons by the Assad’s regime in Syria, the stakes have been raised. But as the calls for international military intervention grows louder, how have Europe’s various players been lining up? Well, the EU is certainly not “speaking with one voice.” Somehow neither the Lisbon Treaty, nor the EEAS nor the arrival of Cathy Ashton has managed to magically replace 28 individual foreign policies with a single EU one. (We remain shocked!) Syria: The Ins, the Outs – and the Maybes As we noted in our previous blog post, Syria has again shown that the EU holds almost as many foreign policy positions as there are states – though we should also remember that this is an extremely complex and senstitive situation. Syria, a fatal choice The momentum in the United States is shifting towards a larger-scale attack on the Assad regime. But even a limited one will transform the nature of the war, with region-wide consequences. Cameron, allies forced to delay strike against Syria Prime Minister David Cameron was forced yesterday (28 August) to push back his plans for an imminent military strike against Syria in a humiliating climb-down for Britain’s leader after coming under fierce domestic and international pressure. Just a day after recalling Britain’s parliament to vote on how to respond to Syria’s suspected use of chemical weapons, Cameron was ambushed when the opposition Labour party said it wanted greater parliamentary scrutiny and rebel lawmakers in his own ruling Conservative party said they would oppose him. Jihad8: EU should get facts on Syrian poison-gas straight before acting like a ‘monkey with a grenade’ Why is the United States rushing to take military action in Syria BEFORE it has ascertained the facts from the United Nations chemical warfare specialists? The US alleges that the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad has exploded chemical weapons with poison gas just a few kms east of Damascus at Ghouta in rebel-held suburbs of Jobar, Zamalka and Ein Tarma and possibly several others. What will more deaths achieve among those who say they ‘love death more than life‘? Syrian NYT Hack Shows New Asymmetries of Modern War While U.S. troops readied for a possible military assault Tuesday, pro-Syrian hackers brought down the NYT and crippled Twitter This is how the Syrian Electronic Army ‘hacked’ the New York Times and Twitter Hacking group the Syrian Electronic Army has added another major media company to its list of scalps after it took the New York Times’ website offline, and affected Twitter’s image service. Why Strike Syria? Planned Attack Has Murky Goals While the U.S. appears poised for missile strikes against Syria as early as Thursday?in response to the Assad regime’s August 21 chemical weapons attacks near Damascus, clarity of mission remains an issue for Obama.   Intelligence no ‘slam dunk’: US officials The intelligence linking Syrian President Bashar al-Assad or his inner circle to an alleged chemical weapons attack that killed at least 100 people is no “slam dunk” Putin, Rouhani agree chemical weapon use ‘impermissible’: Kremlin Russian President Putin and Iranian counterpart Rouhani agree that chemical weapon use is “impermissible” Where does Turkey stand on Syria crisis now? The chemical attack allegations on August 21 in rebel-hold districts of the Syrian capital Damascus US dismisses hope of UN action on Syria The United States on Wednesday ruled out a last-minute bid for UN Security Council action over chemical weapons attacks in Syria, heightening expectations of a Western military strike. Britain says no Syria action before UN inspection results Britain will not take military action against the Syrian regime before United Nations inspectors report back on evidence of chemical weapons attacks UN team takes samples from Syria ‘chemical victims’ UN experts visited the site Wednesday of a second alleged chemical attack near Syria’s capital, and took blood, urine and hair samples from reported victims, an AFP photographer said. No strike on Syria before G20 summit: Russian experts Leaders of the group of the G20 major economies are set to debate sanctions against Syria in a 5-6 September meeting in St Petersburg, with Western nations led by the United States preparing for air strikes in retaliation to a recent chemical attack on civilians. Russian experts quoted by the Russian press agency, RIA Novosti, said that it was unlikely that US President Barack Obama would decide to carry attacks against targets in Syria ahead of the St Petersburg summit.   Related posts: Unfortunately, it seems, the War is coming… “Syria strike due in days, West tells opposition Turkey manages keep relations broken both with Syria and Israel;) A FP roundup…. Looks like US and Turkey are ready for the military action against Syria… A FP roundup… “UN chemical arms probe in Syria to start today Foreign policy roundup: Turkey harsher and harsher towards Assad, Gaza and Syria top Erdoğan’s agenda for US visit…