On Tuesday’s broadcast of CNN’s “The Lead,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) said the United States has to “either destroy or guarantee the security of” chemical weapons inside Syria “before they either get into the hands of al-Qaeda or ISIS or, perhaps, this new coalition government, about whom the jury is very much still out.”
Murphy said, [relevant remarks begin around 31:25] “Well, there’s a long list of concerns, but the United States and Israel share some major concerns that, as chaos reigns inside Syria, some very dangerous people could get their hands on some very dangerous weapons, including chemical weapons. And so, it is in our interest to either destroy or guarantee the security of those weapons of mass destruction before they either get into the hands of al-Qaeda or ISIS or, perhaps, this new coalition government, about whom the jury is very much still out. This new group of rebels in charge of the capital, obviously, has longstanding ties to al-Qaeda and to other extremist groups. We are ready to take them at their word that they have reformed and they are ready to build an inclusive government that protects everyone in Syria. But you have to prepare for the worst. And that’s, in part, what these strikes are designed to do.”
Murphy added that the U.S. does have the leverage over the new Syrian regime since we have troops in the country and it’s too early to judge Syria’s new leadership.
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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