Washington, Jan 11 (ANI): US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has said that American officials are discussing with Middle East governments the steps needed to ensure that Syria's chemical and biological weapons sites are secured when President Bashar al-Assad leaves office.
When asked whether he had ruled out putting U.S. troops in Syria to secure such weapons, Panetta said they 'always have to keep the possibility that, if there is a peaceful transition and international organizations get involved, they might ask for assistance in that situation.'
But in a hostile situation, they have 'not planning to ask for that', he added, CNN reports.
U.S. Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that preventing Syria from using chemical weapons once its military has moved to use them "would be almost unachievable."
According to the report, the discussion came as the Syrian government accused the diplomat leading the international effort to forge peace of being biased in favor of the enemies of Damascus. (ANI)
|
|
Comments:
