Retired General: Jordan Won’t Support Ground Invasion of Syria

Analysts Agree Jordan Not in a Position to Get Involved in Ground War

A new round of joint military exercises has fueled considerable speculation among Jordanians that their government may be about to participate in a surprise US invasion of Syria. The speculation was growing to the point Syria issued a statement yesterday warning them against doing so.

Those familiar with the situation say it’s likely an idle rumor, however, with retired Gen. Mousa al-Odwan, a former special forces commander, saying he doesn’t believe the Jordanian government would offer direct military support in the event of any ground invasion of Syria.

Jordanian political analysts appeared to agree with this assessment, saying their nation’s military is in no position to get into a protracted involvement in a ground war in Syria, and that doing so would have “dire consequences” for the nation’s military and its stability.

While Jordan isn’t on good terms with Syria, their official stance is that the Syrian Civil War should be resolved peacefully. Jordan’s involvement in the war has been chiefly defensive operations along the border, as exemplified by the Jordanian Air Force shooting down an unidentified drone along the Syrian border. Their main priority is to keep the war spreading across the border, particularly ISIS infiltration.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.