US needs military intervention in Syria to protect its global 'empire'

Mon Aug 26, 2013 6:29PM

The United States needs military intervention in Syria to protect and expand its global “empire”, a political analyst told Press TV.

“The US is trying to extricate itself from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Phil Wilayto, editor at the Virginia Defender, said on Monday. “But on the other hand, the job of the US president is to protect the American empire, to extend it as much as possible, to solidify it, to achieve hegemony in the interest of US corporations, and the Middle East is a key to this.”

The US “has a tremendous interest in seeing the Assad government overthrown,” he said. “Its problem is that the forces it has been supporting-the rebel force-- are losing the battle and the Assad government is on the offensive and is regaining a stronger position.”

A growing number of Republicans and Democrats in US Congress are urging President Barack Obama to give the green light to airstrikes against Syria following reports of a chemical attack in the suburbs of Damascus last week.

A team of United Nations experts is in Syria to visit the site of the attack which the opposition blames on the government of President Bashar al-Assad. Damascus categorically denied any role in the attack.

The question is, “which side would gain from killing civilians with chemicals. Would it be the government which is… on a stronger position or the rebels which are on a weaker position and are clamoring for the type of US military intervention that would follow a conclusion by the US government that there has been a chemical attack,” Wilayto asked.

Russia, a key ally of Syria, also insists that the attack was "clearly provocative in nature," and that it was staged by foreign-backed militant groups to incriminate the Assad government.

President Obama said last year that the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government was “a red line” that would provoke a military response.

In recent days, the Pentagon has moved more warships into place in the eastern Mediterranean Sea and American war planners have updated strike targets that include government and military installations inside Syria, officials said.

“This is a very dangerous period right now,” Wilayto said. “And even though there are differences within the US government on how to proceed, the Democrats and Republicans can always agree on one thing; that the US needs to control the Middle East.”

AN/HJ