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Syria's a key player in Iraqi buildup...
Leading military experts told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Syria serves as a key conduit for the smuggling of weapons and components of military platforms to Baghdad. The experts said the Bush administration has not cited Syrian involvement because Damascus has played a small role in the U.S.-led war against terrorism. Anthony Cordesman, a former senior Pentagon official and senior fellow at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Syria has been used as a conduit for a range of what he termed critical parts for Iraq's military. He said many of the details of Syria's participation in Baghdad's military programs are known to the CIA and the rest of the U.S. intelligence community. "I think that we have perhaps found ourselves in a position where because Syria has cooperated in some aspects of dealing with Al Qaida and certain types of Islamic extremists, we have been a little reluctant to point out the fact that there is an increasing flow -- not so much of major arms but critical parts," Cordesman told the Senate committee recently. "We know things like jet engines, tank engines, some aspects of armored spare parts are beginning to move through Syria in very significant deliveries. I think, however, to get down to the details is something that really only people in the intelligence community can tell you." Syria's trying to play both ends against the middle: cooperating in the war on terror, but also supporting Sammy's fellow Arab state and the Arab line in general. It's understandable — they're Arabs, after all, and they figure if they all pull hard enough the Soddies can pull this war with the west thing off. That doesn't mean they won't end up paying for it later, though they're hoping that we're really too nice to make that happen. I'm hoping we're not. Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2002-08-31 |
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