This
was the piece I saw on NZ television this evening. It is similar to
other coverage on the subject. However , it features the concerns of
retired General Richard Myers about the very real dangers of these
weapons falling into the hands of Islamist militants.
In
his view they would not hesitate to use them.
When
I came to post the article it was very difficult to pin
down - it appears that Britain's ITV is the only outlet reporting Gen
Myers' concerns.
General Richard Myers talking to ITV News' Bill Neely. Photo: ITV News
General
Richard Myers has been bitten once. He was America's top soldier
during the Iraq war, the war in which his soldiers failed to find the
weapons of mass destruction that weren't there.
So
you might think he'd be cautious. But he's not, about Syria at least.
I
met him just hours after President Barack Obama had delivered a very
personal warning to Bashar al-Assad about chemical weapons:
If
you make the tragic mistake of using these weapons, there will be
consequences and you will be held accountable.
–
Barack
Obama
Myers
listened to Obama at the National Defence University and, in a room
there, lined with the memorabilia of conflict from the War of
Independence to war today, he told me the real threat was not from
Assad using these weapons but from Islamist groups using them, after
taking the bases where they are stockpiled.
If
they could get their hands on them, they wouldn't hesitate to use
them and some of those events could make the events of 9/11 pale in
comparison.
–
General
Richard Myers
American
intelligence has been wrong so many times but on Syria it seems too
confident.
Images
from American drones and intelligence gleaned from communications
intercepts suggest that some of Syria's huge stockpiles of chemical
weapons are being moved again. This may be to protect them from
capture. Or it may be to prepare them for use.
That
is what Senator John McCain believes. He is of course a hawk on Syria
as on Afghanistan and on most other military matters.
Senator John McCain. Credit: Reuters
Under
the Rotunda dome of his Capitol Hill bunker, the old soldier told me:
"This is an escalation by Assad...he may be preparing that
capability. This is very, very, very dangerous."
It
hardly bears repetition.
American
forces have what they call contingency planning to secure chemical
weapons bases in Syria. It would take thousands, probably tens of
thousands of troops. The US isn't going to send them in any time
soon.
To see the video GO HERE
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