Washington, Aug 4 (Newswire): The Obama administration is facing intensifying calls to punish Syria more forcefully for its bloody crackdown on protests, but officials say that without broader international support they have few options to increase pressure on President Bashar al-Assad's government.
A group of senators introduced legislation that would impose even stronger economic sanctions against Syria than those already imposed against Mr. Assad and a coterie of senior aides. Italy, meanwhile, withdrew its ambassador to Syria and called on other nations to do so, echoing calls by Republicans for President Obama to do the same.
In New York, the United Nations Security Council discussed the violence for a second day on Tuesday but remained divided over how strongly to react. A spokesman for the United Nations secretary general issued the organization's sharpest criticism yet, saying Mr. Assad had "lost all sense of humanity."
In Washington, administration officials vowed tougher measures but stopped short of announcing any new ones, underscoring how difficult a diplomatic and political challenge the crackdown in Syria has become for Mr. Obama.
The administration plans to expand on sanctions first imposed in May, officials said, but the legal process for doing that has lagged behind Syria's accelerating violence against protesters, including brutal attacks that began on Sunday in Hama and other cities. The conflict has claimed the lives of more than 1,500 Syrians since March, according to the United Nations, which cited human rights groups' reports.
The American ambassador to Syria, Robert S. Ford, testifying before the Senate on Tuesday, said sanctions against senior Syrian officials were beginning to bite. He also disclosed that the administration was discussing additional sanctions with the Europeans that would have a more direct effect, since those imposed by the United States already severely limit American trade with Syria.
Underscoring the administration's clear but not explicitly stated goal of a new government in Syria, Mr. Ford said it was important that any punitive sanctions be calibrated in such a way as to not devastate the economy in a "post-Assad" era.
After initially holding out hope that Mr. Assad would heed the protests that have swept the Arab world this year, Mr. Obama has steadily intensified his criticism — only to watch Syrian security forces respond to protesters with more and more force.
Diplomatically, the administration has concentrated its efforts on solidifying international condemnation of Mr. Assad's government, pressing members of the United Nations Security Council to consider a resolution initially floated by Britain in May but blocked by opposition from Russia and other nations angered in part by the NATO-led military operation against Libya.
"The international community has required more prodding in this case than in the case of Libya," a senior administration official said on Tuesday.
The conflict in Libya, in fact, has haunted the administration's handling of Syria in many ways, underscoring the limit of American political influence and military power in the two countries.
While Mr. Obama explicitly called for Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi's ouster, even an American-supported air war backing Libyan rebels has so far failed to bring about his removal. Administration officials say that the United States has even fewer levers in the case of Syria, given that a military option has been all but ruled out and Syria still has support from Arab League members and other countries.
There were signs on Tuesday that the attacks over the weekend had deepened Syria's diplomatic isolation. Russia, an important ally, signaled new support for some Security Council action, though it was unclear how far it would go. "We are not categorically against everything," Sergei Vershinin, a department head within the Russian Foreign Ministry, said in Moscow. "We are categorically against what doesn't help bring forward a peaceful settlement."
A group of senators introduced legislation that would impose even stronger economic sanctions against Syria than those already imposed against Mr. Assad and a coterie of senior aides. Italy, meanwhile, withdrew its ambassador to Syria and called on other nations to do so, echoing calls by Republicans for President Obama to do the same.
In New York, the United Nations Security Council discussed the violence for a second day on Tuesday but remained divided over how strongly to react. A spokesman for the United Nations secretary general issued the organization's sharpest criticism yet, saying Mr. Assad had "lost all sense of humanity."
In Washington, administration officials vowed tougher measures but stopped short of announcing any new ones, underscoring how difficult a diplomatic and political challenge the crackdown in Syria has become for Mr. Obama.
The administration plans to expand on sanctions first imposed in May, officials said, but the legal process for doing that has lagged behind Syria's accelerating violence against protesters, including brutal attacks that began on Sunday in Hama and other cities. The conflict has claimed the lives of more than 1,500 Syrians since March, according to the United Nations, which cited human rights groups' reports.
The American ambassador to Syria, Robert S. Ford, testifying before the Senate on Tuesday, said sanctions against senior Syrian officials were beginning to bite. He also disclosed that the administration was discussing additional sanctions with the Europeans that would have a more direct effect, since those imposed by the United States already severely limit American trade with Syria.
Underscoring the administration's clear but not explicitly stated goal of a new government in Syria, Mr. Ford said it was important that any punitive sanctions be calibrated in such a way as to not devastate the economy in a "post-Assad" era.
After initially holding out hope that Mr. Assad would heed the protests that have swept the Arab world this year, Mr. Obama has steadily intensified his criticism — only to watch Syrian security forces respond to protesters with more and more force.
Diplomatically, the administration has concentrated its efforts on solidifying international condemnation of Mr. Assad's government, pressing members of the United Nations Security Council to consider a resolution initially floated by Britain in May but blocked by opposition from Russia and other nations angered in part by the NATO-led military operation against Libya.
"The international community has required more prodding in this case than in the case of Libya," a senior administration official said on Tuesday.
The conflict in Libya, in fact, has haunted the administration's handling of Syria in many ways, underscoring the limit of American political influence and military power in the two countries.
While Mr. Obama explicitly called for Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi's ouster, even an American-supported air war backing Libyan rebels has so far failed to bring about his removal. Administration officials say that the United States has even fewer levers in the case of Syria, given that a military option has been all but ruled out and Syria still has support from Arab League members and other countries.
There were signs on Tuesday that the attacks over the weekend had deepened Syria's diplomatic isolation. Russia, an important ally, signaled new support for some Security Council action, though it was unclear how far it would go. "We are not categorically against everything," Sergei Vershinin, a department head within the Russian Foreign Ministry, said in Moscow. "We are categorically against what doesn't help bring forward a peaceful settlement."
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