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Allies frustrated by U.S. caution over Syria
Decisions by France and Britain to step up direct support for Syrian opposition forces, possibly with arms shipments to the rebels, threaten to leave the United States on the sidelines of what many see as the approaching climax of a two-year effort to oust President Bashar al-Assad.

That may be precisely where the Obama administration decides to stay, once it concludes a renewed internal debate over whether to pursue a more aggressive policy in Syria.
The Brits and French are welcome to intervene. They have navies to control the Syrian coast, air units to control the skies, and military units that can coordinate with the rebels. They even have a carrier for a week or two each year when the Charles de Gaulle can take to the sea. If they can't handle Syria without us then they're simply not serious about being world leaders. If that's the case they should give up their Security Council seats and step back to being regional powers.
But U.S. hesi­ta­tion has frustrated some of the United States’ closest European and Middle Eastern friends, who say that the time for debate is fast running out. More than 70,000 have been killed and millions have fled their homes. The raging conflict has begun to spill over Syria’s borders, and there is no negotiated end in sight. ­

“We’re at the point where we have to show some real progress,” said a senior official from a Middle Eastern government that actively supports the Syrian rebels. Sophisticated weapons that could help break a months-long military stalemate in and around Damascus and consolidate rebel gains in other parts of the country, he said, could finally convince regime supporters to break with Assad and hasten his downfall.

Anti-Assad governments in the region, including Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar, are privately acerbic in their assessment of U.S. dithering. The Europeans express more understanding, even as they question whether the Obama doctrine of close coordination on issues of shared foreign policy concern is viable if the United States declines to participate.

“It slightly undermines the model” established with the military intervention in Libya, a senior European official said. There, President Obama took credit for organizing and supporting a strategy implemented along with European and Persian Gulf partners.

“We would hope the Americans would join us” on Syria, the official said.
The Euros need the political cover, the air transport and the cash...
British Prime Minister David Cameron backed the call to end the embargo and appeared to directly address U.S. concerns in a Brussels news conference.

“I think it’s worth taking on for a moment the two arguments that the opponents of change make. The first is that what is required in Syria is a political solution, not a military solution. Well, of course people want a political solution . . . but this is not an either-or situation,” Cameron said, adding that political progress was more likely if democratic opposition forces were seen as growing stronger.
Posted by: Steve White 2013-03-17
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=364339