Syrian Coalition Hoping for Obama’s Support of the National Defense Authorization Act

Badr Jamous, the Secretary General of the Syrian Coalition, said that Russia’s calls for returning to the negotiating table contrasts with its substantial military support for the Assad regime. We are with a political solution , and no one can denies the efforts we have made in Geneva and elsewhere to reach this goal. However, all these efforts were aborted by the Iranian intervention on the side of the Assad regime in addition to the Russian support for the upcoming presidential elections in Syria, which was the coup de grace to any chances of reaching political solution in Syria. These farcical elections are in fact part of the military tactics Assad is employing in his military campaign against the Syrian people.” Jamous also stated that the world has finally realized that the threat of using force is the only option capable of forcing the Assad regime to seriously engage in a political settlement to the conflict. The U.S. National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that authorizes the Secretary of Defense to provide equipment, training, supplies, and defense services to assist vetted members of the Syrian opposition augurs a significant change in world’s dealing with the conflict in Syria.” Jamous concluded his remarks saying that “we hope President Obama approve the act as the Syrian people are no longer satisfied by the symbolic steps taken by the international community towards helping them. What we need is a strong position and tangible measures that put an end to the crimes of Assad and his terrorist acts not only in Syria but throughout the whole region.” (Source: Syrian Coalition)