Gen. Dempsey: Syrian Rebels Won’t Be US Allies If They Seize Power

Plans to Arm Rebels Slow Amid Growing Mistrust

It took a disturbingly long time to get there, but officials within the Pentagon seem to be increasingly recognizing the reality that an al-Qaeda-dominated Syrian rebellion isn’t going to suddenly be pro-US just because of President Obama’s plans to arm some factions.

Joint Chiefs of Staff head Gen. Martin Dempsey says that the US is now opposed to any military intervention in Syria at all because of the belief that the rebels wouldn’t support America’s interests.

The realization has been a long time coming, as officials had long touted the rebels as friends of America, and had been pushing for ever more aid to rebel factions in an effort to improve ties.

Now even the arms smuggling schemes are slowing down, as the US clearly trusts the rebels less and less, and are hoping to step back from a position of unquestioning support for regime change that is looking less and less wise by the minute.

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.