Clinton lays out Syria policy in Arabic-language op-ed
In opinion article for 'Asharq Al-Awsat,' US sec. of state details views on conflict between Bashar Assad and pro-democracy protesters.
By JPOST.COM STAFFUS Secretary of State Hillary Clinton 311 (R)(photo credit: REUTERS/Saul Loeb)
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has penned an op-ed for London-based Arabic-language daily newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat to promote her view on Syrian democracy.The article, titled "There is No Going Back in Syria," was translated on Clinton's official website for the US State Department.RELATED:Despite crackdown, protests erupt across Syria; 19 deadAnalysis: Will Syrian issue warm Israeli-Turkish ties?"It is increasingly clear that President Assad has made his choice," writes Clinton. "But while continued brutality may allow him to delay the change that is underway in Syria, it will not reverse it."The Secretary of State used the op-ed to lay out the three tenets of her stance on the conflict in Syria. First, she writes, the protests are undoubtedly being carried out by Syrian citizens, desperate for regime change, not foreign infiltrators as Assad has claimed. Second, Assad is aligning himself more and more with Iran and the regime tactics of Ahmadinejad through his bloody crackdown and repression of the press.Click for full Jpost coverage of turmoil in the Middle EastShe explains, "If President Assad believes he can act with impunity because the international community hopes for his cooperation on other issues, he is wrong about this as well. He and his regime are certainly not indispensable."Finally, Clinton writes, the revolution has reached a point of no return. From this moment on, she says, the only option is the creation of "a new political order" in Syria.
