Target Syria NWO's next acquisition The Middle East- WW III - Muslim Civil War

[Psalm 51:17]

Obama said he will seek Congress approval and than attack Syria.

Congress doesn't come back until Sept 9th or 10th, right? The UN will give back their "report" next week.

We'll see...

[Mark]

Obama: 'After careful deliberation I have decided the United States should take military action against Syria' - Live video

More: President Obama will seek authorization for the use of force in Syria from Congress - Live video

Obama: 'While I believe I have the authority to carry out this military action, I know the country will be strong if we take this course' - Live video

President Obama: 'What message will we send if a dictator can gas hundreds of children to death?' - Live video

President Obama: 'We are the United States of America. We cannot turn a blind eye to what happened in Damascus' - Live video

[Psalm 51:17]

All going as scripted - look for LOTS of (Hegelian Dialectic)TALK b/w "Democrats", "Republicans", and the NWO establishment MSM over the next 10 days.

[Mark]

House Speaker Boehner says House will consider measure on Syrian military action the week of Sept. 9 - @Reuters

More from Boehner: 'We are glad the president is seeking authorization for any military action in Syria in response to serious, substantive questions being raised' - via @NBCNews

[Psalm 51:17]

House Speaker Boehner says House will consider measure on Syrian military action the week of Sept. 9 - @Reuters

More from Boehner: 'We are glad the president is seeking authorization for any military action in Syria in response to serious, substantive questions being raised' - via @NBCNews

Boehner has been in Obama's pocket since day 1 he became Speaker.

[Mark]

Rep. Peter King: 'President Obama is abdicating his responsibility as commander-in-chief and undermining the authority of future presidents' - via @NBCNews

Article. 1.

Section. 8.

The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;

To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;


Section. 10.

No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.

Peter King= MORON, WHY do we keep electing people that DO NOT KNOW our laws?

[Psalm 51:17]

^^ Looked up "abdicating" on Yahoo(yeah, my vocabulary understanding is not very good, as I was always a Math person  ), and this Peter King comment in an article popped up on the first page, believe it or not.

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/319801-peter-king-obama-abdicating-responsibility-as-commander-in-chief

FYI, King is a Roman Catholic, and possibly Jesuit trained(as he went to RCC colleges).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_T._King

[Psalm 51:17]

Peter King= MORON, WHY do we keep electing people that DO NOT KNOW our laws?

Here's more...

US hawks slam Obama as world awaits Syria strike
8/31/13
http://news.yahoo.com/us-hawks-slam-obama-world-awaits-syria-strike-152458125.html

Even as the world waited on Saturday to hear when President Barack Obama was to order military strikes against Syria's chemical-armed regime,the US leader was already under fire at home.

While the latest opinion polls show that the American public does not even support Obama's plan for a "limited, narrow" operation, his hawkish opponents demanded tougher action.

On Friday, the White House released an intelligence summary that it said showed that Bashar al-Assad's regime killed more than 1,400 civilians in a nerve gas barrage.

Obama said that the United States has a duty to respond, but has promised only a limited operation to punish the use of banned weapons rather than to topple Assad's government.

With Obama cloistered at the White House with his advisors, his former presidential opponent Senator John McCain took to the airwaves to call his plans "shameful."

"The president apparently wants to have a kind of a cosmetic strike, launch a few missiles and then say: 'Well, we responded.'," McCain told chat show host Jay Leno on NBC television.

"This is the same president that, two years ago, said Bashar al-Assad had to go. It's also the president that said that there would be a red line if they used chemical weapons," he said.

"Maybe that red line was written in disappearing ink? I don't know. But we have to be as good as our word. And is there any good options? No."

McCain said that if he were commander-in-chief, as he had hoped to be after the 2008 election he lost to Obama, he would destroy the Syrian regime's airbases and arm rebel fighters.

"To our everlasting shame, not one single weapon from the USA has reached the hands of General Idris and the Free Syrian Army. That is shameful, in my view," he declared.

In May, McCain -- a neoconservative 77-year-old former Vietnam War prisoner of war -- traveled to Syria and met rebel leaders fighting Assad.

He has since become the most strident voice calling for US intervention against Assad's Iranian-backed regime, and speaks for a hawkish Washington faction that feels Obama's caution has weakened America's hand.

Obama's top team -- Secretary of State John Kerry, National Security Advisor Susan Rice and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel -- was to brief skeptical Republican members of Congress later in the day, as the window for strikes opened.

But, while McCain and his allies think the promised "tailored response" to Assad's gassing of Syrian civilians shamefully weak, many voters and US allies consider it reckless.

British lawmakers voted Thursday to veto their government's plan to join the US-led coalition forming to carry out strikes, leaving France as the only Western ally likely to take part.

And, according to an NBC News opinion poll published Friday, American voters oppose military intervention by a margin of 50 to 42.

[Psalm 51:17]

And more...

http://news.yahoo.com/congress-top-republicans-praise-obama-syria-193829152--politics.html
Congress' top Republicans praise Obama on Syria
8/31/13

WASHINGTON (AP) — Leading congressional Republicans praised President Barack Obama's decision to seek lawmakers' approval before punishing Syria for a chemical attack. But it was far from clear whether they would support such a strike in a region rife with warfare and the specter of retaliation.

"I do believe (Syria) should not have impunity," for the Aug. 21 attack near Damascus, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said by telephone. "But we need to understand what the whole scope of consequences is. What the president may perceive as limited...won't stop there."

The White House was expected to brief members of Congress throughout the weekend, part of what's certain to be a full-court press to persuade lawmakers to sign off on what Obama described as a narrowly-focused operation that could be carried out anytime over the next few weeks.

Obama's decision to consult Congress came after lawmakers widely demanded he seek authorization under the War Powers Act. The specter of the Iraq war hovered too, with lawmakers skittish over the Bush administration's claim — later disproved — that Saddam Hussein's government possessed weapons of mass destruction.

"And all of us should be accountable as we move forward, and that can only be accomplished with a vote," Obama said Saturday. "And in doing so, I ask you, members of Congress, to consider that some things are more important than partisan differences or the politics of the moment."

Secretary of State John Kerry said the chemical weapons attack killed 1,429 people, of which he said 426 were children.

For now, many lawmakers were praising Obama for putting the question to Congress. But it is not expected to act until the House returns from recess Sept. 9.

"Under the Constitution, the responsibility to declare war lies with Congress," said House Speaker John Boehner in a statement. Boehner, who is second in line to the presidency, said his chamber would consider the question the week of Sept. 9.

"We are glad the president is seeking authorization for any military action in Syria in response to serious, substantive questions being raised," he said.

"The President's role as commander-in-chief is always strengthened when he enjoys the expressed support of the Congress," agreed the top Republican in the Senate, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.

Rep. Peter King, however, said Obama was abdicating his role as commander-in-chief. King, R-N.Y., suggested the president was undermining the authorities of future presidents and seeking a political shield for himself by going through Congress.

"The president doesn't need 535 Members of Congress to enforce his own redline," he said.

[dedicated4christ]

I can't verify this, but I am pretty sure I either heard something about this or I came to the conclusion by watching a MSM-produced video, but it essentially said the constitution could be put on "hold" to go to war. So I thought, this would be a perfect time for them to ditch it all-together.

[Kilika]

Rep. Peter King, however, said Obama was abdicating his role as commander-in-chief. King, R-N.Y., suggested the president was undermining the authorities of future presidents and seeking a political shield for himself by going through Congress.

"The president doesn't need 535 Members of Congress to enforce his own redline," he said.

So we had Congress complain that the president must go through Congress for approval on military action, then we have presidents who claim they don't need to go through Congress, and now we have Congress saying the president must not go through Congress or else he's weak!

Will somebody make their minds up please? 

I believe it's rather clear that a president, barring less than 24 hour situations, must asked Congress for authority for a military strike. I do not believe the Constitution allows a president to draw his own line in the sand. This is a representative form of government. The representatives, Congress and President, must ask the represented, the public, for authority.

[Boldhunter]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRq_NlNy9ko&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Someone in the comments section of this vid said Biden looked like he was going to laugh - and there is a smirk on his face.  Its all so weird. I found all of Obama's words so "double speak" and just agenda-filled.  I couldn't believe a word he said.

[Mark]

Syrian state-run daily calls Obama move a retreat

A Syrian state-run newspaper on Sunday called President Barack Obama's decision to seek congressional approval before taking military action against Syria "the start of the historic American retreat."
 
The gloating tone in the front-page article in the Al-Thawra daily followed Obama's unexpected announcement on Saturday that he would ask Congress to support a strike punishing the President Bashar Assad's regime for the alleged use of chemical weapons. The decision marked a stark turnabout for the White House, which had appeared on the verge of ordering U.S. forces to launch a missile attack against Syria.
 
"Whether the Congress lights the red or green light for an aggression, and whether the prospects of war have been enhanced or faded, President Obama has announced yesterday, by prevaricating or hinting, the start of the historic American retreat," Al-Thawra said.
 
The paper, which as a government outlet reflects regime thinking, also claimed that Obama's reluctance to take military action stems from his "sense of implicit defeat and the disappearance of his allies." The daily said the American leader worries about limited intervention turning into "an open war has pushed him to seek Congress' consent."
 
Syria's minister for reconciliation issues, Ali Haidar, echoed that line.
 
"Obama has given himself a chance to take a step backward by talking about Congress' approval and to search for other parties to participate in the attack," Haidar told The Associated Press by telephone. "In other words, he wants to keep brandishing the sword of aggression on Syria without fully giving up the idea of an attack and even without setting a definite date for the aggression."
 
The U.S. Navy moved warships over the past week into the eastern Mediterranean as the Obama administration considered its options. With everything in place, Obama said Saturday that he had decided the U.S. should take military action and that he believes that he has the authority as commander-in-chief to "carry out this military action without specific congressional authorization."
 
But he added that he believes the U.S. "will be stronger" if he takes his case to Congress for its nod of approval before taking action.
 
Congress is scheduled to return from a summer break on Sept. 9, and in anticipation of the coming debate, Obama challenged lawmakers to consider "what message will we send if a dictator can gas hundreds of children to death in plain sight and pay no price."
 
The White House has sent Congress a draft of a resolution seeking approval for a military response to "deter, disrupt, prevent and degrade" the Assad regime's ability to use chemical weapons going forward. The Senate will hold hearings next week so a vote can take place after Congress gets back to work.
 
The president's strategy carries enormous risks to his and the nation's credibility, which the administration has argued forcefully is on the line in Syria. Obama long ago said the use of chemical weapons was a "red line" that Assad would not be allowed to cross with impunity.
 
Britain's prime minister, David Cameron, charted a similar course last week by asking the House of Commons to support military action against Syria, only to suffer a stinging defeat.
 
Across the Atlantic, Obama's choice has sparked calls for French President Francois Hollande, who has backed calls for an armed response against Syria, to seek parliamentary approval before taking military action. Hollande is not constitutionally required to do so. France's parliament is scheduled to debate the issue Wednesday, but no vote is scheduled
 
For some in Syria's opposition who had put great hope in U.S. strikes, Obama's decision was a source of despair. For others, it was seen as simply business as usual from a country that they say has done nothing to halt the massive trauma and bloodshed gripping Syria.
 
"We weren't putting too much hope in the U.S strike," said Mohammed al-Tayeb, an opposition activist in Eastern Ghouta. "America was never a friend of ours, they're still an enemy."
 
In the buildup to the potential strikes, the opposition and Damascus residents say the Assad regime moved it troops and military equipment out of bases to civilian areas.
 
The main Western-backed opposition group, the Syrian National Coalition, said in a statement Sunday that the army repositioned rocket launchers, artillery and other heavy weapons inside residential neighborhoods in cities nationwide.
 
Two Damascus residents the AP spoke with confirmed the regime troop movements. One woman said soldiers had moved into a school next to her house and she was terrified.
 
With U.S. strikes no longer looming, the U.N. probe into the attack has at least a week and a half to analyze samples it took during on-site investigations before the specter of military action comes yet again to the fore.
 
The head of the U.N. team, Swedish professor Ake Sellstrom, is to brief U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon later Sunday. The group of experts collected biological and environmental samples during their visits to the rebel-held Damascus suburbs that were hit in the Aug. 21 attack.
 
The inspectors left Syria on Saturday and arrived in The Hague, Netherlands. The samples they collected in Syria are to be repackaged and sent to laboratories around Europe to check them for traces of poison gas. The U.N. says there is no specific timeline for when their analysis will be completed.
 
There are widely varying death tolls from the suspected toxic gas attack. The aid group Doctors Without Borders says at least 355 people were killed, while the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring groups says it has identified 502 victims by name. A U.S. intelligence assessment says the attack killed 1,429 civilians, including more than 400 children.
 
In Cairo, Arab League foreign ministers were to hold an emergency session Sunday evening to discuss Syria. Last week, the 22-nation bloc condemned the Aug. 21 attack outside Damascus but said it does not support military action without U.N. consent.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SYRIA_CRISIS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-09-01-07-10-10

[Mark]

Syria Facing U.S. Cyber Attacks in Upcoming Strikes
U.S. military forces are expected to roll out new cyber warfare capabilities during the anticipated military strike on Syria for its use of a deadly nerve agent, according to military sources. Targets of cyber attacks likely will include electronic command and control systems used by the Syrian military forces, air defense computers, and other military communications networks.   
http://freebeacon.com/syria-facing-u-s-cyber-attacks-in-upcoming-strikes/

The Three Reasons Russia Backs Assad So Staunchly
Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad shake hands as they meet in Moscow's Kremlin December 19, 2006. Over the course of the 29-month Syrian conflict, Russia has provided the regime of Bashar al-Assad with supplies including guns, grenades, tank parts, fighter jets, advanced anti-ship cruise missiles, long-range air defense missiles, military officers as advisors, diplomatic cover, and lots of cash. 
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/three-reasons-russia-backs-assad-105304685.html

Obama puts Syria strike on hold, opposition 'disappointed'
Syria's opposition expressed disappointment Sunday that President Barack Obama had put on hold military action against the Damascus regime, but said it was confident US lawmakers would green-light a strike. To general surprise, the US leader on Saturday broke with decades of precedent to announce that he would seek approval from Congress for action against Syria's alleged use of chemical weapons.   
http://news.yahoo.com/us-weighing-limited-narrow-action-against-syria-035535999.html

[Mark]

Syrian rebels admit to being behind chemical weapons attack

Members of the Syrian rebel movement have admitted that they were behind the Aug. 21 chemical weapons attack near Damascus, Minnesota's Mint Press News reported on Thursday.
 
According to the report, the chemicals were provided by Saudi Prince Bandar bin Sultan, who “has been at the very heart of the push for war by the U.S. against Assad.”
 
The group Doctors Without Borders went to the town of Ghouta, where more than 350 people were killed as a result of the chemical attack. After interviewing “numerous...doctors, Ghouta residents, rebel fighters and their families,” the group obtained testimony that the attack was a result of mismanagement and ignorance on the part of the rebels, who didn't realize that they had chemical weapons.
 
“My son came to me two weeks ago asking what I thought the weapons were that he had been asked to carry,” the Mint Press quotes Abu Abdel-Moneim, the father of a rebel who was killed in a tunnel during the chemical attack.
 
Some of the weapons had a "tube-like structure," and others resembled a "huge glass bottle," Abdel-Moneim said.
 
“They didn’t tell us what these arms were or how to use them,” said a female rebel, referred to as "K" to protect her identity. “We didn’t know they were chemical weapons. We never imagined they were chemical weapons.
 
“When Saudi Prince Bandar gives such weapons to people, he must give them to those who know how to handle and use them,” K continued.
 
“Jabhat al-Nusra militants do not cooperate with other rebels, except with fighting on the ground," another rebel called J added. "They do not share secret information. They merely used some ordinary rebels to carry and operate this material.
 
“We were very curious about these arms. And unfortunately, some of the fighters handled the weapons improperly and set off the explosions.”
 
Jabhat al-Nusra is a branch of al Qaeda from Iraq comprised of members who fought and killed American troops during the U.S. occupation of that country.
 
Despite the admission from these rebels, the Obama administration continues to claim that the Bashar al-Assad regime was behind the attack.
 
In an address from the State Department on Friday, Secretary of State John Kerry accused Assad of committing a “crime against humanity” and claimed that the U.S. government knows that Assad was behind the attack.
 
“We know that for three days before the attack, the Syrian regime’s chemical weapons personnel were on the ground in the area, making preparations,” Kerry said.
 
“And we know that the Syrian regime elements were told to prepare for the attack by putting on gas masks and taking precautions associated with chemical weapons. We know that these were specific instructions.
 
“We know where the rockets were launched from, and at what time. We know where they landed, and when. We know rockets came only from regime-controlled areas and went only to opposition-controlled or contested neighborhoods.”
 
Members of the U.S. intelligence community, however, have stated that they don't know for sure who was behind the attack.
 
Intelligence sources told the Associated Press that the evidence against Assad is “not a slam dunk,” and the New York Times reported on Thursday that U.S. officials have no “smoking gun” to indicate it was Assad behind the attack.

http://www.examiner.com/article/syrian-rebels-admit-to-being-behind-chemical-weapons-attack

US Secretary of State John Kerry says that samples in Damascus have tested positive for signs of Sarin gas exposure http://t.co/HVkch9Q1Nh - @politico

US Secretary of State John Kerry says evidence of Sarin gas use in Syria came to US independently, not through UN - @JimAcostaCNN
  

US Secretary of State Kerry says blood and tissue samples from 1st responders tested positive for sarin gas - @mitchellreports

[Psalm 51:17]

I can't verify this, but I am pretty sure I either heard something about this or I came to the conclusion by watching a MSM-produced video, but it essentially said the constitution could be put on "hold" to go to war. So I thought, this would be a perfect time for them to ditch it all-together.

Pretty much, this is the little game Satan's Illuminati minions have played over the years - through Hegelian Dialectic, war of words. If anything, they probably already have Syrian war plans finalized a long time ago, but they will play the public for long stretches via the MSM "arguing" back and forth, back and forth to wear out the public. And the next thing we know, they get what they want, and the American public shows indifference.

No difference from Iraq - there was big opposition to it months prior to the invasion, but once they officially green-lit the invasion months later, either no one cared or they were supporting it, while all of these "anti-war protests" dwindled.

Best advice - turn off the television MSM throughout this week.

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-opposition-urges-us-congress-vote-yes-134001120.html
9/1/13
Syrian opposition urges US Congress to vote 'yes'

ISTANBUL (AP) — Syria's opposition urged the U.S. Congress on Sunday to approve military action against President Bashar Assad, saying the legislators must make it clear that the use of chemical weapons will be punished wherever that occurs.

"Dictatorships like Iran and North Korea are watching closely to see how the free world responds to the Assad regime's use of chemical weapons against the Syrian people," the Syrian opposition coalition said in a statement Sunday. "If the free world fails to respond to such an outrageous breach of international norms, dictators around the world will be encouraged in their efforts to follow the example set by Assad."

On Saturday, President Barack Obama said he would seek congressional approval for a military strike against the Syrian government in retaliation for a chemical weapons attack.

The Syrian opposition also said a U.S. attack should be accompanied by more arms being sent to the rebels.

"'During the past two-and-a-half years, the democratic world has offered only condolences and promises whilst Assad's regime, supported by its allies in Iran and Russia, has been busy killing Syria's democratic hopes," said the statement issued in Istanbul.

"The Syrian coalition believes any possible military action should be carried out in conjunction with an effort to arm the Free Syrian Army. This will be vital in restraining Assad and ending the killing and chaos he wants to spread throughout the region."

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/analysis-russias-putin-sees-chance-turn-tables-obama-134514334.html
9/1/13
Analysis: Putin sees chance to turn tables on Obama at G20

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Less than three months after Vladimir Putin was cast as a pariah over Syria at the last big meeting of world leaders, the Russian president has glimpsed a chance to turn the tables on Barack Obama.

The U.S. president's dilemma over a military response to an alleged poison gas attack in Syria means Obama is the one who is under more pressure going into a G20 summit in St Petersburg on Thursday and Friday.

Obama stepped back from the brink on Saturday, delaying any imminent strike to seek approval from the U.S. Congress.

Yet at a G8 summit in Northern Ireland in June, Putin was isolated over his backing for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and scowled his way through talks with Obama, who later likened him to a "bored kid in the back of the classroom".

Putin has ignored the jibe and stood his ground over Assad, dismissing Obama's allegations that Syrian government forces carried out a chemical weapons attack on August 21.

Buoyed by growing pressure on the U.S., French and British leaders over Syria, the former KGB spy has also now hit back in comments referring ironically to Obama as a Nobel Peace laureate and portraying U.S. global policy as a failure.

"We need to remember what's happened in the last decade, the number of times the United States has initiated armed conflicts in various parts of the world. Has it solved a single problem?" Putin asked reporters on Saturday in the city of Vladivostok.

"Afghanistan, as I said, Iraq ... After all, there is no peace there, no democracy, which our partners allegedly sought," he said during a tour of Russia's far east.

Denying as "utter nonsense" the idea that Assad's forces would use chemical weapons when they were winning the civil war, Putin looked steely and confident.

After months of pressure to abandon Assad, he is sending a message to the West that he is ready to do battle over Syria in St Petersburg and sees an opportunity to portray the United States as the bad boy on the block.

"Of course the G20 is not a formal legal authority. It's not a substitute for the U.N. Security Council, it can't take decisions on the use of force. But it's a good platform to discuss the problem. Why not take advantage of this?" he said.

"Is it in the United States' interests once again to destroy the international security system, the fundamentals of international law? Will it strengthen the United States' international standing? Hardly," he said.

PUTIN'S GRANDSTANDING

There was an element of grandstanding in Putin's first public comments on the dispute over the poison gas which killed hundreds of people in areas held by Syrian rebels.

One of his aims is to deflect criticism at this week's meeting of the 20 developed and emerging powers, including all five permanent members of the Security Council, at which Syria is likely to overshadow talks on the global economy.

Putin also seems intent on taking a swipe at Obama, who pulled out of a Russia-U.S. summit that was planned for this week after Moscow defied Washington by granting former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden a year's asylum.

Putin still risks facing criticism over a law banning "gay propaganda" at the summit, and is accused abroad of clamping down on the opposition to reassert his authority following the biggest protests since he was first elected president in 2000.

But the tension over possible military strikes on Syria has ensured Obama has been the focus of world attention, rather than Putin, in the run-up to the G20 - which will consider issues such as economic growth, unemployment and financial regulation.

There has been no repeat of the sentiment expressed by Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on the eve of the G8 summit. Upset by Russia's position on Syria, he said the G8 group of industrialized countries was in reality the "G7 plus one".

Any hopes in the West that Russia would shift stance because of the use of chemical weapons now look to have been frustrated.

Russian officials have reiterated that Moscow, an important arms supplier to Assad, has the right to deliver such weapons and that their sale does not break international law.

Moscow, which has blocked earlier efforts at the United Nations Security Council to condemn Assad and tighten sanctions on his government, has also made clear it is not about to support moves against Damascus at the United Nations.

Putin says the attack may have been a provocation by rebels fighting Assad, intended to hasten U.S. military intervention, and has used criticism of Washington over Syria to whip up anti-American sentiment and shore up support among Russian voters.

"There is also a cynical element where anti-Americanism has been successful to rally public opinion."

PUTIN EMBOLDENED

Putin, in fact, seems emboldened as Obama's problems pile up and some of his allies face difficulties over Syria.

British Prime Minister David Cameron is under pressure after parliament refused to back military action and Obama's decision to seek Congress' approval for strikes has put French President Francois Hollande under pressure to let deputies have a say.

Putin said the British parliamentary vote last Thursday was a sign that even people in countries closely allied to the United States were drawing conclusions from what he depicted as Washington's foreign policy mistakes.

"Even there, there are people who are guided by national interests and common sense, people who value their sovereignty," Putin said.

Any prospect of "shaming" Putin into a change of tack over Syria is also increasingly seen abroad as unlikely to work.

"I don't get the sense that Russia is overly concerned about its international image in this regard," said the senior U.S. administration official. "It takes pride in being independent ... Russia is not timid or bashful when it comes to Syria support."

(Additional reporting by Lidia Kelly and Steve Gutterman in Moscow, Denis Dyomkin in Vladivostok and Matt Spetalnick in Washington; editing by David Stamp)

[Psalm 51:17]

NO mention of Syria on 8/30/13 broadcast of The McLaughlin Group(headed by former Nixon speechwriter John McLaughlin). You would think that with Pat Buchanan being a regular in his panel, it would not only come up, but be the hot topic of the day? Yes? No.

[Mark]

The USS Nimitz has arrived in the Red Sea, Department of Defense official confirms - @NBCNews

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.msn.com/world/uss-nimitz-carrier-group-rerouted-for-possible-syria-help
USS Nimitz carrier group rerouted for possible Syria help
9/2/13

The Nimitz carrier strike group is moving west in the Arabian Sea should it be required to assist with an attack on Syria.


WASHINGTON — The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and other ships in its strike group are heading west toward the Red Sea to help support a limited U.S. strike on Syria, if needed, defense officials said on Sunday.

The Nimitz carrier strike group, which includes four destroyers and a cruiser, has no specific orders to move to the eastern Mediterranean at this point, but is moving west in the Arabian Sea so it can do so if asked.

"It's about leveraging the assets to have them in place should the capabilities of the carrier strike group and the presence be needed," said the official.

"We try to reduce the physics of time and space so we can be as ready as possible should we be needed," said a second official, cautioning that decisions about ship positioning in the Mediterranean were still being finalized.

Meanwhile, Russia is sending a reconnaissance ship to the eastern Mediterranean, Interfax news agency reported on Monday.

The reconnaissance ship left Russia's naval base in the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Sevastopol late on Sunday on a mission "to gather current information in the area of the escalating conflict", the Interfax report quoted an unidentified military source as saying.

The Defense Ministry declined immediate comment but Interfax said the vessel, the SSV-201 Priazovye, would operate separately from a Russian navy unit already stationed in the Mediterranean.

President Barack Obama on Saturday delayed imminent cruise missile strikes by five destroyers off the coast of Syria until Congress had time to debate the issue, effectively putting any military action on hold for at least nine days.

The delay gives military planners more time to reassess which ships and other weapons will be kept in the region — and which may be swapped out — before the military launches what defense officials say is still intended to be a limited and narrowly targeted attack on Syria.

The U.S. Navy doubled its presence in the eastern Mediterranean over the past week, effectively adding two destroyers to the three that generally patrol the region.

Related: Syria dismisses Obama as confused, moves troops

The destroyers are carrying a combined load of about 200 Tomahawk missiles, but officials say a limited strike on Syria could be accomplished with half that number.

The Nimitz carrier group had been in the Indian Ocean supporting U.S. operations in Afghanistan but was due to sail east around Asia to return to its home port in Everett, Wash., after being relieved in recent days by another aircraft carrier, the USS Harry S. Truman.

Given the situation in Syria, U.S. military officials decided to reroute the Nimitz and send it west toward the Red Sea, and possibly the Mediterranean, officials said.

The Navy has also sent the USS San Antonio, an amphibious ship carrying 300 Marines and extensive communications equipment, to join the destroyers, diverting it from a different mission that would have taken it farther west.

A second official said the San Antonio could serve as an afloat forward staging base, providing a temporary base for special operations forces, if they were needed. It could also assist with non-military evacuations.

Russia reiterated on Monday that the United States had not proved its allegations and that the chemical attack may have been staged by Syrian rebels to provoke outside intervention in the more than two-year-old civil war.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia remained unconvinced following a meeting between Michael McFaul, the U.S. ambassador to Moscow, and a senior Russian diplomat.

The material the United States has shown Russia "contained nothing concrete: no geographical coordinates, no names, no proof that samples were taken in a professional manner", Lavrov told students and staff at Russia's main diplomatic academy.

"What our American colleagues and the British and French showed us earlier and recently absolutely does not convince us," Lavrov said, according to state-run news agency RIA.

Echoing comments by Putin at the weekend, Lavrov said: "There are no facts there ... and when we ask for more detailed proof. They say, 'You know, it's all secret, so we cannot show it'. That means there are no such facts."

Additional reporting by Steve Gutterman of Reuters.

[Mark]

Russia Dismisses U.S. Evidence of Chemical-Weapons Use by Assad Regime
War of Words Between Kremlin and White House Continues

Speaking during an appearance at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, Mr. Lavrov said there is "nothing concrete" in the information the U.S. has shown Russia on the use of such weapons by Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad's regime.

"That which our American partners have shown us both in the past and recently…absolutely has not convinced us," Mr. Lavrov said.

"There are no facts, there is just dialogue about 'what we know for sure,'" Mr. Lavrov said. "And when we ask for more detailed confirmation, they say, 'You know, it's all secret, so we can't show you.' That means such facts aren't there."

His comments echoed those made Saturday by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who described as "absolute nonsense" the idea that Mr. Assad's troops would wield chemical weapons at a time when they're winning Syria's long-running civil war.

Mr. Lavrov's remarks show the widening rift between the Kremlin and the White House over Syria as Mr. Putin prepares to meet President Barack Obama at the G-20 summit later this week in St. Petersburg, Russia.

The pair's most recent meeting, which took place at the G-8 summit in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, resulted in an impasse and a subsequent awkward news conference. Mr. Obama later denied having poor relations with Mr. Putin, though he described the Russian president as sometimes looking like "a bored kid in the back of a classroom."

Russia's skepticism about the evidence of Syrian chemical-weapons use also comes as Congress prepares to vote on whether the U.S. should strike Syrian targets in response to a deadly Aug. 21 attack in the Damascus suburbs, which the Obama administration has characterized as a chemical-weapons strike by Mr. Assad's regime.

In an interview Sunday with ABC News, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry described the evidence of chemical-weapons use as clear and powerful, noting that the "case is growing stronger by the day." He hit out at Russia for refusing to admit that Mr. Assad's regime has been using such tactics.

"We've offered the Russians previously to have a briefing on this. In fact, we sent people over to Russia who have provided evidence we had with respect to the last (attacks). And they chose, I literally mean chose, not to believe it or to at least acknowledge it publicly," Mr. Kerry said.

"I think the evidence is going to be overwhelming. If the president of Russia chooses yet again to ignore it, that's his choice," Mr. Kerry said.

On Monday, Mr. Lavrov said it was "strange to hear" such comments coming from his good friend Mr. Kerry.

Mr. Obama was supposed to visit Mr. Putin in Moscow ahead of the G-20 summit this week but backed out of the meeting due to lack what the White House described as a lack of progress on the U.S.-Russian "bilateral agenda." The White House's decision to cancel also came after Russia granted asylum to National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324886704579050710084040936.html

[Psalm 51:17]

Russia Dismisses U.S. Evidence of Chemical-Weapons Use by Assad Regime

War of Words Between Kremlin and White House Continues

Yep, we're going to see a lot of this this week - not only b/w Russia and Obama, but pretty much everyone on Capitol Hill.

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/obama-seeks-syria-support-former-foe-mccain-072931290--politics.html
9/2/13
Obama seeks Syria support from former foe McCain

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama, seeking a congressional endorsement for U.S. military intervention in civil war-wracked Syria, is inviting two leading Capitol Hill foreign policy hawks to the White House in efforts to sell the idea to a nation deeply scarred by more than a decade of war.

Having announced over the weekend that he'll seek congressional approval for military strikes against the Assad regime, the Obama administration is now trying to rally support among Americans and persuade members of Congress with an array of views on Syria.

Sen. John McCain, Obama's White House opponent in 2008, will be joined for the talks later Monday by Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, who like McCain has argued that Obama must not only punish the Syrian regime with surgical missile strikes but must seek to change the course of the civil war and oust President Bashar Assad from power.

Obama has said he wants limited military action to respond to an attack in the Damascus suburbs last month that the U.S. says included sarin gas and killed at least 1,429 civilians, more than 400 of whom were children.

McCain and Graham, both Republicans, represent the most aggressive faction in Congress and have called on Obama to launch more comprehensive strikes with an aim of destroying President Bashar Assad's air power, his military command and control, Syria's ballistic missiles, and other military targets while at the same time increasing training and arming of opposition forces.

On the other side of the spectrum, some Republican and Democratic lawmakers don't want to see military action at all.

Members of the House Democratic caucus were to participate in an unclassified conference call Monday with Obama national security adviser Susan Rice, Secretary of State John Kerry, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The White House is engaging in what officials call a "flood the zone" persuasion strategy with Congress, arguing that failure to act against Assad would weaken any deterrence against the use of chemical weapons and could embolden not only Assad but also Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Obama's turnabout decision to seek congressional authority on Syria sets the stage for the biggest foreign policy vote in Congress since the Iraq war.

On Sunday, Kerry said the U.S. received new physical evidence in the form of blood and hair samples that shows sarin gas was used in the Aug. 21 attack. Kerry said the U.S. must respond with its credibility on the line.

"We know that the regime ordered this attack," he said. "We know they prepared for it. We know where the rockets came from. We know where they landed. We know the damage that was done afterwards."

On Capitol Hill Sunday, senior administration officials briefed lawmakers in private to explain why the U.S. was compelled to act against Assad. Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough also made calls to individual lawmakers.

In addition to Monday's meetings and briefings, further sessions were planned for Tuesday and Wednesday. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee plans a meeting Tuesday, according to its chairman, Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J. The Senate Armed Service Committee will gather a day later, said Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe, the top Republican on the panel.

"The American people deserve to hear more from the administration about why military action in Syria is necessary, what it will achieve and how it will be sufficiently limited to keep the U.S. from being drawn further into the Syrian conflict," said Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee, the top Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, reflecting a more cautious approach to a military strike.

McCain said Obama asked him to come to the White House specifically to discuss Syria.

"It can't just be, in my view, pinprick cruise missiles," the Arizona Republican told CBS' "Face the Nation."

In an interview with an Israeli television network, he said Obama has "encouraged our enemies" by effectively punting his decision to Congress. He and Graham have threatened to vote against Obama's authorization if the military plan doesn't seek to shift the momentum of the 2 ½ year civil war toward the rebels trying to oust Assad from power.

Obama is trying to convince Americans and the world about the need for action.

So far, he is finding few international partners willing to engage in a conflict that has claimed more than 100,000 lives in the past 2½ years and dragged in terrorist groups on both sides of the battlefield.

Only France is firmly on board among the major military powers. Britain's Parliament rejected the use of force in a vote last week.

Russia's foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, said Monday the information the U.S. showed Moscow to prove the Syrian regime was behind the chemical attack was "absolutely unconvincing."

With Navy ships on standby in the eastern Mediterranean ready to launch missiles, Congress on Sunday began a series of meetings that are expected to continue over the next several days in preparation for a vote once lawmakers return from summer break, which is scheduled to end Sept. 9.

Senior administration officials gave a two-hour classified briefing to dozens of members of Congress in the Capitol on Sunday.

Lawmakers expressed a range of opinions coming out of the meeting, from outright opposition to strident support for Obama's request for the authorization to use force.

Among Democrats, Rep. Sander Levin of Michigan said he'd approve Obama's request and predicted it would pass. Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland said he was concerned the authorization might be "too broad." Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, the senior Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, said the administration still has "work to do with respect to shoring up the facts of what happened."

Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington said she was concerned about what Congress was being asked to approve. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., said the war resolution needed tightening.

"I don't think Congress is going to accept it as it is," Sessions said.

[Psalm 51:17]

First off, the writer of this article uses Steve Quayle has a source for a paragraph or 2 - but nonetheless, you can see the big picture here(which has pretty much been buzzing for years).

http://www.newswithviews.com/McGuire/paul184.htm
AMERICA, SYRIA, AND RUSSIA: OPENING THE GATES OF HELL

By Paul McGuire
 September 2, 2013
NewsWithViews.com

The whole world is reacting to President Obama’s decision for America to attack Syria over an alleged chemical attack because Assad’s forces had been accused of using chemical weapons several times in the last year, including the August 21st attack in the suburbs of Damascus. However, a number of news analysts such as Pat Buchanan and Ron Paul have called this a “False Flag” attack.

The Pentagon is moving a sixth warship armed with cruise missiles to the eastern Mediterranean Sea, giving the U.S. more firepower for a possible attack on Syria in response to alleged use of chemical weapons, a U.S. defense official said. According to reports, the guided-missile destroyer Stout will soon join four other missile-carrying U.S. destroyers within range of Syria. Each destroyer can carry up to 90 cruise missiles which have a range of nearly 1,000 miles. Whether they will acknowledge it in public or not, the international community and the United Nations look to the American Empire to supply its massive military force to solve international conflicts.

What is happening in Syria will not only affect America, Russia, Great Britain, China, Syria, Iran, and Israel. It will affect the entire world because Syria, controlling major oil assets off its coast, occupies a critical position in the global oil economy. It is possible for oil prices to go through the roof, and that would send a tsunami across the global economy. There have been reports put out by big banks like SocGen and Goldman Sachs that oil could soar to $150 a barrel if the Syrian conflict goes hot and draws in Russia and China.

According to an article by Steve Quayle in his, “V - The Guerrilla Economist Updates,” “The trouble for Syria began with two things. First the discovery of natural gas in the Mediterranean right off the coast of Syria, Lebanon and Israel. Read that list again, especially Lebanon and Syria. Is the picture becoming clearer? This discovery took place about a decade ago but the thing is that there already exists in the Middle East a Liquid Natural Gas Producing power house. This is the tiny nation of Qatar.”

Quayle continues, “Now here is where you need to put your thinking caps on. Qatar is floating in LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) it has over 77 Billion Tonnes in Reserve and that is with a moratorium in place. The problem is that Qatar would love to sell its LNG to the EU and the hot Mediterranean markets. The problem for Qatar in achieving this is their regional big brother Saudi Arabia. The Saudis have already said "NO" to an overland pipe cutting across the Land of Saud.” The Qatar / Syria region has vast reserves of natural gas. Russia has a deal with Syria that allows it to sell this Natural Gas and Oil to Europe.”

Russia now controls the oil coming out of Syria and being sold throughout Europe and China. However, there appears to be a battle for the control of that oil.

The Nabucco Agreement was signed by a handful of European nations and Turkey back in 2009. It was an agreement to run a natural gas pipeline across Turkey into Austria, bypassing Russia again with Qatar in the mix as a supplier to a feeder pipeline via the proposed Arab pipeline from Libya to Egypt to Nabucco (is the picture getting clearer?). The problem with all of this is that a Russian backed Syria stands in the way.

Qatar would love to sell its LNG to the EU and the hot Mediterranean markets. The problem for Qatar in achieving this is Saudi Arabia. The Saudis have already said "NO" to an overland pipe cutting across the Land of Saud. The only solution for Qatar if it wants to sell its oil is to cut a deal with the U.S.

Recently Exxon Mobile and Qatar Petroleum International have made a $10 Billion deal that allows Exxon Mobile to sell natural gas through a port in Texas to the UK and Mediterranean markets. Qatar stands to make a lot of money and the only thing standing in the way of their aspirations is Syria.

The US plays into this in that it has vast wells of natural gas, in fact the largest known supply in the world. There is a reason why natural gas prices have been suppressed for so long in the US. This is to set the stage for US involvement in the Natural Gas market in Europe while smashing the monopoly that the Russians have enjoyed for so long. What appears to be a conflict with Syria is really a conflict between the U.S. and Russia!

The main cities of turmoil and conflict in Syria right now are Damascus, Homs, and Aleppo. These are the same cities that the proposed gas pipelines happen to run through. Qatar is the biggest financier of the Syrian uprising, having spent over $3 billion so far on the conflict. The other side of the story is Saudi Arabia, which finances anti-Assad groups in Syria. The Saudis do not want to be marginalized by Qatar; thus they too want to topple Assad and implant their own puppet government, one that would sign off on a pipeline deal and charge Qatar for running their pipes through to Nabucco.

With the strong possibility of the strike from America happening, there is massive fear in the market and oil prices are surging. Now the end game is to cut Russia's lock on natural gas and oil that it supplies to Europe. If this connection is cut in any way, it will bring severe consequences to the Russian economy as well as Russia's natural gas company Gazprom.

There are two opposing factions in Syria. On one side you have the Qatari backed Muslim Brotherhood and its subsidiaries that have very close ties with the Emir of Qatar. On the other side you have the Saudi backed Wahhabi AL-Qaeda and its subsidiaries. These groups commit atrocities, like the cannibalism of the Wahabis and the "Brotherhood" slaughtering Christians.

What the international bankers are not telling the American people is that the U.S. economy is in reality crumbling and being propped up by the Federal Reserve printing money from nothing which they call Quantitive Easing. Using the pretense of spreading love and democracy throughout the Middle East, the U.S. has already seized control of six Arab nations.

For Russia, Syria is more than just the location of a strategic port in the gas rich Middle East; it is an essential strategic area. Russia is now forced to draw a very hard line in the sand lest they lose the entire European market to Middle Eastern and Caspian Energy interests. Syria is in the heart of Eurasia and historically, the empire that controls Eurasia controls the world. Russia cannot allow that; this is why they are putting their military assets in place. China, one of the world’s super powers, cannot have its natural gas flow interrupted as well, and China has sided with the Russians when it comes to Syria.

If Obama attacks Syria, some analysts believe Vladimir Putin is prepared to strike Saudi Arabia. This could stop the flow of oil from the Middle East. The United States government could go into a state of emergency and immediately restrict private access to fuel in this country in order to conserve the reserves inside of the United States! This would paralyze our economy. Grocery stores, major retail outlets, and pharmacies which operate on real time delivery principles would be virtually empty in matter of days. It is not inconceivable that banks would be closed and martial law established. Obviously, this is a worst case scenario.

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/hezbollah-mobilises-ahead-potential-us-syria-strike-191153343.html
Hezbollah mobilises ahead of potential US Syria strike
9/2/13

Lebanon's Shiite Hezbollah group, a close ally of the Syrian regime, is redeploying its forces ahead of possible US strikes on Damascus, according to witnesses in Lebanon.

The reports come as the daily Al-Akhbar, which is close to both Hezbollah and the Syrian regime, said on Monday that the group had "called on all its officers and members to man their positions."

Residents speaking to AFP in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre said there appeared to be a general mobilisation of the group's members, even if such a movement was not being publicly discussed.

Many Hezbollah fighters have disappeared from local villages in the last five days, though strict security measures around group headquarters and checkpoints have remained in place, residents said.

The situation is the same in the Bekaa Valley of eastern Lebanon, a stronghold of the organisation.

Residents said fighters, including gunners, had left their regular posts, and switched off their mobile phones to ensure they could not be traced.

In the southern suburbs of the capital Beirut, also considered a Hezbollah bastion, teenagers have replaced more experienced fighters at checkpoints inspecting cars entering the district.

A Hezbollah spokesman declined to comment on the reported redeployment of the group's forces.

On Monday, Al-Akhbar also reported that the "Syrian army has mobilised units that have not participated until now in the conflict."

"It has established an operations room... with Hezbollah and the units in charge of missiles are at an unprecedented level of alert," the daily added.

"The Islamic resistance (Hezbollah) has called on all its officers and members to man their positions," the newspaper reported.

The reported mobilisation comes after US President Barack Obama said he favoured the use of military action against Syria in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack in the suburbs of Damascus.

But Obama has said he will seek approval from Congress for any strikes in response to the attack, for which the Syrian regime denies responsibility.

Hezbollah is a close ally of the Syrian regime, and has dispatched fighters to battle alongside Syrian troops and against rebels seeking to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

Wadah Charara, an expert on the group, says it commands around 30,000 fighters, including 10,000 with extensive combat experience.

Between 800 and 1,2000 Hezbollah fighters are thought to have taken part in the Syrian regime's battle to recapture the town of Qusayr in central Homs province earlier this year.

[Mark]

Russia Issues Travel Warning to Its Citizens About United States and Extradition

 Countries often issue travel advisories warning citizens of danger abroad: war, for instance, or a terrorist threat or an outbreak of disease. The Russian Foreign Ministry posted advice of a somewhat different nature on Monday, cautioning people wanted by the United States not to visit nations that have an extradition treaty with it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/03/world/europe/russia-issues-travel-warning-about-united-states.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&smid=tw-nytimesworld&_r=2&

[Mark]

FLASHBACK: REBELS arrested with Sarin gas...

Russia asks Turkey for info on sarin terrorists

6 June 2013

Russia has called on Turkey to share its findings in the case of Syrian rebels who were seized on the Turkish-Syrian border with a 2kg cylinder full of nerve gas sarin.

Russia’s top foreign official Sergei Lavrov tolday said the Kremlin wanted to get clear on the issue of chemical weapons used in Syria, since the allegation had taken on the role of a trading card in the conflict, becoming a focus of constant provocations.

“I do not rule out that some force may want to use it [the rumour] to say that the “red line” has been crossed and a foreign intervention is needed,” the minister said.

“We are still waiting on a comprehensive report from our Turkish colleagues,” he added, citing the incident when a gang of terrorists carrying a canister with nerve gas sarin was arrested inside the Turkish territory about two weeks ago.

Moscow calls to pick side in Syria conflict

Russia’s chief of foreign affairs has urged the international community to finally take its pick and decide whether it is going to side with forces set to topple the Syrian regime or with the ones calling for a nationwide dialogue on Syrian peace.

Speaking at a press conference, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said: “We want that… the international community took off the blinders that make its focus on its immediate urge to overthrow one leader, then unseat another one, while turning a blind eye on the outcome of these actions.”

“Whatever has been happening during this ‘Arab Spring,’ it is clear now that these events are closely connected, so it is important to choose who you are siding with… with those who want to cut the knot without looking back at the suffering nation – or with those who want to solve this problem though dialogue,” Mr. Lavrov said.

Russia urges prompt inquiry into chemical arms use in Syria - Lavrov
All of the possible instances of chemical weapons use in Syria should be established as soon as possible, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

"I would like to support Guido [German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle] regarding the need to urgently establish all of the facts linked to reports about the possible use of chemical weapons by the sides," Lavrov said at a press conference in the Kaliningrad region on Thursday.

A serious mistake was made when the Syrian government's request to investigate the possible use of chemical toxic substances in the city of Aleppo on March 19 was left without any response, but unlimited and unhindered access to any facility on Syrian territory was demanded instead, the Russian minister said.

All opposition groups in Syria should be able to be involved in reaching compromise - Lavrov

Russia insists that all structures related to the settlement of the situation in Syria should take part in the international conference on Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

"All structures should be present at that conference. That applies not only to the national coalition, which has so far failed to take a constructive stance in the conference. That also applies to those opposition structures that do not want to be present at the Geneva conference if it is called under the 'umbrella' of the national coalition," Lavrov told a press conference on Thursday.

Among the organization that want to take an independent part in the conference are the National Coordination Committee and the Syrian Kurds, he said.

"We believe all opposition structures in Syria should be given an opportunity to communicate their viewpoint and participate in the achievement of a compromise, which will ensure peace, stability, ad equal rights for all ethnic and religious groups in the country," Lavrov said.

Russia vows to bring Iran to Syria parley amid Western criticism

Russia is set to push for Iranian presence at the planned Syria conference, dubbed Geneva II, in Switzerland, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Thursday.

Mr. Lavrov stressed Moscow was intent on bringing all countries who can influence the parley to the negotiating table. And one of those world powers is Tehran, he pointed out.

The West has met this motion with a great deal of resentment. “At the current stage our partners have been quite outspoken and critical about Iran’s participation,” Sergei Lavrov said at a briefing today. “We think they are mistaken,” he added.

The Russian foreign minister vowed that Russia “will keep pressing for including all influential parties in the conference.”

http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/151261/russia-asks-turkey-for-info-on-sarin-terrorists.html

[Christian40]

[Christian40]