what sequester: Kerry promises syria 60 million in aid

[tyroneweaver]

U.S. To Give Syrian Opposition $60 Million More In Non-Lethal Aid, Kerry Says : The Two-Way : NPR

hilarious

 

[DiamondDave]

They leftists and big government types just cannot help themselves.. it is like a sickness

 

[Mr. H.]

Over $50 billion per year in foreign military and economic aid, and Obama insists WE are the one's to suffer?

 

[waltky]

Syrian freedom fighters need weapons as well as medical supplies...

Syrian rebel chief: Fighters desperate for weapons
Mar 1,`13: -- The head of Syria's rebels said Friday that the food and medical supplies the United States plans to give his fighters for the first time won't bring them any closer to defeating President Bashar Assad's forces in the country's civil war.

"We don't want food and drink, and we don't want bandages. When we're wounded, we want to die. The only thing we want is weapons," Gen. Salim Idris, chief of staff of the opposition's Supreme Military Council, told The Associated Press by telephone. The former brigadier in Assad's army warned that the world's failure to provide heavier arms is only prolonging the nearly 2-year-old uprising that has killed an estimated 70,000 people. In what was described as a significant policy shift, the Obama administration said Thursday it was giving an additional $60 million in assistance to Syria's political opposition and said it would, for the first time, provide non-lethal aid directly to rebels battling to topple Assad.

The move was announced by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at an international conference on Syria in Rome. In the coming days, several European nations are expected to take similar steps in working with the military wing of the opposition to increase pressure on Assad to step down and pave the way for a democratic transition. But the frustration expressed by Idris is shared by most of his colleagues in the Syrian opposition, as well as by scores of rebels fighting in Syria. They feel abandoned by the outside world while the Assad regime pounds them with artillery and bombs.

The main rebel units, known together as the Free Syrian Army, regrouped in December under a unified, Western-backed command headed by Idris and called the Supreme Military Council, following promises of more military assistance once a central council was in place. Despite those pledges, opposition members say very little has been delivered in terms of financial aid, and more importantly, in weapons and ammunition. The international community remains reluctant to send weapons, fearing they may fall into the hands of extremists increasingly gaining ground among the rebels.

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[LeftofLeft]

Syrian freedom fighters need weapons as well as medical supplies...

Syrian rebel chief: Fighters desperate for weapons
Mar 1,`13: -- The head of Syria's rebels said Friday that the food and medical supplies the United States plans to give his fighters for the first time won't bring them any closer to defeating President Bashar Assad's forces in the country's civil war.

"We don't want food and drink, and we don't want bandages. When we're wounded, we want to die. The only thing we want is weapons," Gen. Salim Idris, chief of staff of the opposition's Supreme Military Council, told The Associated Press by telephone. The former brigadier in Assad's army warned that the world's failure to provide heavier arms is only prolonging the nearly 2-year-old uprising that has killed an estimated 70,000 people. In what was described as a significant policy shift, the Obama administration said Thursday it was giving an additional $60 million in assistance to Syria's political opposition and said it would, for the first time, provide non-lethal aid directly to rebels battling to topple Assad.

The move was announced by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at an international conference on Syria in Rome. In the coming days, several European nations are expected to take similar steps in working with the military wing of the opposition to increase pressure on Assad to step down and pave the way for a democratic transition. But the frustration expressed by Idris is shared by most of his colleagues in the Syrian opposition, as well as by scores of rebels fighting in Syria. They feel abandoned by the outside world while the Assad regime pounds them with artillery and bombs.

The main rebel units, known together as the Free Syrian Army, regrouped in December under a unified, Western-backed command headed by Idris and called the Supreme Military Council, following promises of more military assistance once a central council was in place. Despite those pledges, opposition members say very little has been delivered in terms of financial aid, and more importantly, in weapons and ammunition. The international community remains reluctant to send weapons, fearing they may fall into the hands of extremists increasingly gaining ground among the rebels.

MORE

Unlike the US, Syria can drill their way to medical supplies.

 

[waltky]

Aid to Syrian rebels comes under fire...

Aid experts warn U.S. aid to Syrian rebels blurs lines
March 2nd, 2013 - The decision by the Obama administration to provide nonlethal aid to Syrian rebel forces seeking to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad is drawing fire from some in the aid community, saying it politicizes aid and violates principles of neutrality which governs aid delivery.

Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday announced the United States would give aid to armed opposition, including medical supplies and meals. The aid marks the first signs of direct and vocal American support for the rebels in the nearly two-year bloody conflict, which the UN estimates has claimed more than 70,000 lives and forced millions more from their homes. Washington hopes the aid will bolster the credibility of the Syrian opposition, peel away supporters from al-Assad and curb a growing allegiance to radical Islamic groups gaining favor among the population by providing basic services to citizens in rebel-controlled areas.

But some aid workers worry al-Assad’s regime could punish all humanitarian groups for the U.S. decision, thus hampering efforts to deliver aid. “I can’t imagine that they are going to be super happy about it,” said a senior aid official for a faith-based organization operating on the ground in Syria who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid jeopardizing aid efforts. “Is it going to impede our access six months from now if one side gets a better hand than the other side?”

The State Department is making a distinction between the direct aid to the Syrian opposition and some $385 million in humanitarian aid which is delivered through the United Nations and aid groups throughout the country. “There are still two separate pots,” deputy spokesman Patrick Ventrell told reporters. “We will still continue to spend money through aid organizations to feed any Syrian that needs it. And some of that has crossed rebel lines between the rebel and regime lines, and some of that has gone into areas that are still held by the regime... Separately, and apart from that, what we’re trying to do is accelerate the opposition’s ability to govern the space that they have. And so part of what we’re doing is working with the opposition coalition as they build that up.”

MORE

See also:

Irked lawmakers say Kerry left them in the dark on Syria aid
2/28/13 - Lawmakers on Thursday said the State Department left Congress in the dark about the administration's decision to aid rebel forces in Syria.

The leaders of the panels that cover foreign policy told The Hill they weren't briefed ahead of Secretary of State John Kerry's announcement Thursday that America would be sending $60 million worth of food and medicine directly to the rebels battling Syrian President Bashar Assad. The chairmen of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services panels — Sens. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Carl Levin (D-Mich.) — weren't informed ahead of time, but did not express complaints. Republicans also weren't informed, and expressed dismay at being shut out as the administration crafts a major piece of America's policy in the Middle East.

Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Kerry used to chair, said his staff were talking to the State Department until 8 p.m. Wednesday to get a sense of what might be discussed at Thursday's meeting in Rome with the Syrian opposition. They were told nothing. “So, we're going to have a little discussion with them about that,” he said. “I mean, look, we probably support the policy. But we were a little disappointed that no head's up was given. It's not a good way to start out and we want to make sure it does not happen again.” Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he wasn't briefed, either. “Isn't that strange?” he said. “Yeah, I should have.”

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who preceded Inhofe in the role and has called for arming the rebels, said the administration “certainly won't communicate with us on Syria.” “It's a half measure,” he said. “And I know from my sources that many of those weapons [provided by other countries in ] are not getting through … are going to the wrong people, these jihadist outfits. And here we are 23 months into it, 70,000 dead, so it's a small half-measure."

The chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.), said the decision to blindside Congress was unsurprising. “There's lots of things they don't brief us on,” he said. “That's just kind of way things go. I can't lose any sleep over that; they're going to do what they're going to do.” He declined to weigh in on the policy itself. “Generally,” he said, arming groups “doesn't work very well for us. At some point, they start using bullets to shoot back at us.”

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/global-aff...s-congress-in-the-dark-on-syria#ixzz2MR8A5cq4

 

[Rozman]

Looks like Obama found some money under the mattress...