US to retain military threat against Syria

The US military will maintain the threat of force against Syria in case the regime fails to abide by an agreement to relinquish control of its chemical weapons, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said.
“We should keep that military option exactly where it is,” Hagel told a press conference.
“We have assured the president that our assets and force posture remain the same,” he said.
“We are prepared to exercise any option that he would select,” Hagel was quoted as saying by AFP.
Hagel’s comments made clear the US had no plans to withdraw destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean, which had been prepared to launch cruise missile attacks to punish Damascus over its alleged use of chemical weapons, the news agency said.
Hagel said it was clear “the credible threat of US force” helped to persuade Syria to agree to a US-Russia accord that calls for the regime to turn over its chemical arsenal to international control.
US defense officials told AFP four destroyers equipped with Tomahawk cruise missiles remained in place in the eastern Mediterranean, ready to launch a possible attack if diplomacy fails.
Hagel and Gen. Martin Dempsey, the military’s top-ranking officer, also said the administration was still considering whether to have the Pentagon take over the arming of Syria’s fighters from the Central Intelligence Agency, which would involve larger scale assistance.
Meanwhile, Crown Prince Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, held talks with Gen. Lloyd J. Austin, commander of the US Central Command and his delegation at the crown prince’s office in Jeddah.
“During the meeting Prince Salman and Gen. Austin discussed prospects of expanding cooperation between the two countries,” SPA reported quoting senior officials.
Deputy Defense Minister Prince Salman bin Sultan, Chief of the Crown Prince’s Court, Prince Muhammad bin Salman, Chief of Staff Gen. Hussein Al-Qubail, and Maj. Gen. Saqer Al-Amri, acting director of the defense minister’s office, took part in the Jeddah meeting.
The meeting was also attended by Tim Lenderking, deputy chief of mission at US Embassy in Riyadh, Maj. Gen. Craig Fowler, head of military operations at Centcom, and Maj. Gen. Thomas Howard, head of US military mission.
According to Reuters, General Dempsey said the Syrian government still had effective control of its chemical weapons and should be able to transfer them to international inspectors for destruction despite the ongoing civil war.
Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, acknowledged the conflict in Syria posed “a very challenging environment” for eliminating the weapons under a framework agreement reached by the US and Russia.
Dempsey and Hagel said they were comfortable with the diplomatic process to try to eliminate Syria’s chemical weapons.
Hagel said the threat of US force against Syria had helped lead to diplomacy and should remain in place until an agreement is finalized.