[CBSNEWS] As the United States works to confirm an intelligence assessment indicating the use of chemical weapons in Syria - and as U.S. policymakers consider how to respond if that assessment proves true - a key member of President Obama's national security team called for prudence and patience on Monday.
"Yasss. It's a red line, but we don't want to do anything."
"You mean 'do anything hasty?'"
"No. We're not going to do anything. We said we were, but now we're not. We're more concerned with maintaining American prestige in the world."
"We are continuing to assess what happened, when, where...working with our allies and our own intelligence agencies," said Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel during a press conference with Japanese Foreign Minister Itsunori Onodera. "I think we should wait to get the facts before we make any judgments on what action, if any should be taken, and what kind of action.
In recent days, members of Congress have used the report of chemical weapons use to press the administration to take a more active role in the Syrian civil war by instituting a no-fly zone or supplying the Syrian rebels with arms. The United States has already provided non-lethal assistance to elements within Syria working to unseat President Bashar Assad. |
