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There's Almost No Chance Russia's Plan for Syria's Chemical Weapons Will Work
Foreign Policy ^ | 09/11/2013 | Yochi Dreazen

Posted on 09/11/2013 7:35:57 AM PDT by SeekAndFind

Russia's proposal for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to place his chemical weapons under international supervision and then destroy them is quickly gaining steam. Assad's government accepted the plan this morning.

A few hours later, President Obama, British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Francois Hollande announced that they'd seriously explore the proposal. It already has the backing of United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and a growing number of influential lawmakers from both parties. There's just one problem: the plan would be nearly impossible to actually carry out.

Experts in chemical weapons disposal point to a host of challenges. Taking control of Assad's enormous stores of the munitions would be difficult to do in the midst of a brutal civil war. Dozens of new facilities for destroying the weapons would have to be built from scratch or brought into the country from the U.S., and completing the job would potentially take a decade or more. The work itself would need to be done by specially-trained military personnel or contractors. Guess which country has most of those troops and civilian experts? If you said the U.S., you'd be right.

"This isn't simply burning the leaves in your backyard," said Mike Kuhlman, the chief scientist for national security at Battelle, a company that has been involved in chemical weapons disposal work at several sites in the U.S. "It's not something you do overnight, it's not easy, and it's not cheap."

The decades-long U.S. push to eliminate its own chemical weapons stockpiles illustrates the tough road ahead if Washington and Damascus come to a deal. The Army organization responsible for destroying America's massive quantities of munitions says the effort will take two years longer than initially planned and cost $2 billion more than its last estimate.

(Excerpt) Read more at thecable.foreignpolicy.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Israel; News/Current Events; Russia; United Kingdom; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: chemicalweapons; davidcameron; europeanunion; france; francoishollande; hitlersrhineland; iran; israel; lebanon; maheralassad; potassiumfluoride; russia; sarin; sodiumfluoride; syria; thebrotherdidit; unitedkingdom; waronterror
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1 posted on 09/11/2013 7:35:57 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

It’s not supposed to work. But Obama bought it.


2 posted on 09/11/2013 7:37:09 AM PDT by dfwgator
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To: SeekAndFind

Then what is the affirmative action POTUS to do? Bomb Assad and allow the MB and AQ groups to take-over the country to commit mass murder against the other religious groups living in Syria?


3 posted on 09/11/2013 7:38:07 AM PDT by Hotlanta Mike ("Governing a great nation is like cooking a small fish - too much handling will spoil it." Lao Tzu)
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To: SeekAndFind

It depends on what your definition of “work” is.


4 posted on 09/11/2013 7:38:43 AM PDT by workerbee (The President of the United States is DOMESTIC ENEMY #1)
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To: SeekAndFind

Russia is going to control the chemical weapons that the Russians said the Syrians didn’t have and didn’t use.
Umm......sure.


5 posted on 09/11/2013 7:40:26 AM PDT by AppyPappy (Obama: What did I not know and when did I not know it?)
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To: dfwgator

He didn’t buy it. He knows. It fits in with his intention to diminish the USA and it’s influence.


6 posted on 09/11/2013 7:42:23 AM PDT by Daveinyork
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To: SeekAndFind

Russia will have boots on the ground.


7 posted on 09/11/2013 7:43:08 AM PDT by Darksheare (Try my coffee, first one's free..... Even robots will kill for it!)
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To: Darksheare

I’m not so sure they don’t already.


8 posted on 09/11/2013 7:44:00 AM PDT by dfwgator
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To: SeekAndFind

Which is the beauty of what Putin did to obama courtesy of Kerry.

A total rout of obama’s policies.


9 posted on 09/11/2013 7:47:16 AM PDT by Uncle Miltie (Why haven't we heard from the 30 Benghazi survivors?)
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To: dfwgator

Spetnaz probably.


10 posted on 09/11/2013 7:48:39 AM PDT by Darksheare (Try my coffee, first one's free..... Even robots will kill for it!)
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To: Darksheare

I would hope they would make a beeline for those Christian villages....Putin would score a huge PR victory if they found out his troops rescued Christians from the Islamo-Fascists.


11 posted on 09/11/2013 7:49:43 AM PDT by dfwgator
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To: AppyPappy
Russia is going to control the chemical weapons that the Russians said the Syrians didn’t have and didn’t use. Umm......sure.

Well, the Russians moved them out of Iraq just before the invasion..., remember? Now I guess they will contract with Iraq to "dispose" of the chemicals and move them there?

12 posted on 09/11/2013 7:50:07 AM PDT by ExSES (the "bottom-line")
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To: dfwgator

Darn autocorrect!
Spetsnaz.
With an “s” you toopid phone!

Mobile phone, not so smert.
You need to backspace and fight to get it to not mess with things.


13 posted on 09/11/2013 7:51:29 AM PDT by Darksheare (Try my coffee, first one's free..... Even robots will kill for it!)
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To: SeekAndFind

It already worked. It got Obama out of the corner he had painted himself into, which is all he cares about.


14 posted on 09/11/2013 7:51:33 AM PDT by Hugin
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To: dfwgator

And it would be a huge black eye for the big eared guy.


15 posted on 09/11/2013 7:52:37 AM PDT by Darksheare (Try my coffee, first one's free..... Even robots will kill for it!)
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To: workerbee
Chemical Weapons aren't stockpiled. Their precursors are. They are mostly legitimate Dual Use chemicals that are legal otherwise. Hydrogen Fluoride (Teflon)Isopropyl Alcohol. Looking at some now. So, don't mix it with your toothpaste.
16 posted on 09/11/2013 7:52:42 AM PDT by massgopguy (I owe everything to George Bailey)
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To: dfwgator

The decades-long U.S. push to eliminate its own chemical weapons stockpiles illustrates the tough road ahead if Washington and Damascus come to a deal. The Army organization responsible for destroying America’s massive quantities of munitions says the effort will take two years longer than initially planned and cost $2 billion more than its last estimate.<<

Did anyone else notice we have stockpiles of WMDs that have been outlawed for more than one hundred years?

DK


17 posted on 09/11/2013 7:54:15 AM PDT by Dark Knight
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To: Darksheare

The first time I tried to use a smart phone to post here, after three or four short posts I got permabanned...Dead serious. This after being a member with not so much as a warning for 13 years.

I don’t use a smart phone to post any more.


18 posted on 09/11/2013 7:54:47 AM PDT by cuban leaf (Were doomed! Details at eleven.)
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To: SeekAndFind

so?

There was zero chance that Bubba’s “light water reactors for no nukes promise in North Korea” plan would work and I bet “FP magazine” supported it to the hilt.

Everyone involved in that deal knew that NK would renege. They knew North Koreans think “it’s your deal not ours”.


19 posted on 09/11/2013 7:55:44 AM PDT by GeronL
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To: cuban leaf

It is different.
I can say that much.


20 posted on 09/11/2013 7:57:30 AM PDT by Darksheare (Try my coffee, first one's free..... Even robots will kill for it!)
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