Secretary of State John Kerry has set a hard deadline for Syria to remove Syrian President Bashar Assad from power. If the process to remove Assad does not being by Aug. 1 Kerry states that there will be “serious consequences”.
[revad1]
Kerry is working to end the fighting caused by a five year civil war in Syria. He states that the war will never end as long as Assad remains in power. Opposing rebels are unwilling to accept Assad as president. The current plan to end fighting in Syria, which is backed by the United Nations, does not call for Assad to step down. Kerry is working on a new truce that calls for Assad to step down as leader. He feels that it is the most efficient way to bring peace to the area. Kerry has released a statement to the Associated Press that is directed at Assad as well as Russia and Iran, the two countries currently supporting the war-torn country:
“If Assad does not adhere to this, there will clearly be repercussions,One of them may be the total destruction of the cease-fire and then go back to war. I don’t think Russia wants that. I don’t think Assad is going to benefit from that. There may be even other repercussions being discussed. That is for the future.”
The United States claims it will completely change its strategy against Assad and Syrian forces if Assad does not step down. Many critics believe Kerry and the U.S. are lobbing empty threats at Syrian president.
The Obama administration has a history of issuing stern formal warnings but failing to follow through. In 2013 the Obama administration claimed they would immediately intervene if Syria used chemical weapons. Assad later used Sarin gas to kill over 1,300 people. Obama did not act and did not respond with military force.
Do you believe the U.S. will follow through on the threats issued by Kerry if Assad does not step down by Aug. 1? Sound off in the comment section below!
