Obama: army is ready for action, but we'll give negotiations a chance

U.S. President Barack Obama said in a speech in the morning especially to the American people that he sees the possibility of a diplomatic solution to the civil war in Syria. However, the president made it clear that Washington is still prepared to take military action against the Assad regime, in response to chemical weapons attack in Damascus.

In his speech, Obama said that there is no guarantee that Syrian President Bashar Assad will give up chemical weapons to his disposal. The President also said that "Israel can defend itself with great power and with the support of the United States" and that "the Assad regime is not able to significantly affect the U.S. military."

"We know that the Assad regime has used chemical weapons against civilians. Over 1000 killed, including hundreds of children. Use of chemical weapons is not only a violation of international law, but also a danger to American interests, risk to neighboring countries such as Turkey and Israel.

"The question is now what to do. In my previous speech, I made the Syrian government's actions require a military attack. I asked to obtain the consent of Congress for action which is limited in scope. However, I will not let American soldiers set foot on Syrian soil.

"After we act militarily, we will take measures to bring a political settlement of the situation in Syria. In recent days there are international initiatives to urge Assad to give up chemical weapons in his disposal. Initiatives came as a result from our intention to take military action. That's why I asked Congress to wait a bit with the vote, to see where the international initiatives lead us.

"For seven decades the U.S. has an important international role as a superpower. The U.S. is not the policeman of the world, but in cases where we can save children from dying of gas - this is where we need to act, this is our commitment."

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!