ISTANBUL – The United States is providing Syrian rebels with $123 million in new nonlethal aid that may include body armor and other types of supplies that haven’t been part of the assistance package in the past.
The additional money will double the nonlethal assistance to the Syrian opposition as well as increase humanitarian aid. The nonlethal aid could include armored vehicles, night vision goggles and advanced communications equipment.
Additional Photos
Foreign ministers from the main supporters of the rebels trying to topple the Syrian government were meeting in Istanbul over the weekend to increase pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad to step down. The United Nations estimates that the fighting in Syria has killed more than 70,000 people.
“The stakes in Syria couldn’t be more clear: chemical weapons, the slaughter of people by ballistic missiles and other weapons of huge destruction, the potential of a whole country … being torn apart into enclaves, the potential of sectarian violence,” U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement.
“This bloodshed needs to stop and that’s what brought us here tonight on Saturday and a very early Sunday morning to talk about the possibilities for peace and transition,” Kerry said.
In a joint statement, the foreign ministers said they welcomed the Syrian National Coalition’s “firm rejection of extremism and its commitment not to use chemical weapons” and cited those commitments in agreeing to enhance and expand support for all coalition institutions.
The foreign ministers said they recognized the “need to change the balance of power on the ground” and, in looking at the current flow of military assistance, welcomed the additional pledges and commitments to further increase the support to the Supreme Military Council. Syrian opposition leader Moaz al-Khatib said in a statement, “Our revolution is for the entire Syrian people.”
Still, the Syrian National Coalition said the limited support, while appreciated, wasn’t enough.
“We call on the international community to be more forthcoming and unreserved to fulfill its responsibilities in extending support that is needed by the Syrian people,” the coalition said in a statement.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.