The US will no longer seek to overthrow President Assad
The US has said it is no longer seeking to overthrow the Bashar al-Assad regime but has warned it will not fund Syria's reconstruction.
On December 17, US Ambassador for Syria James Jeffrey said that Washington will no longer seek to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as previously planned. Instead, Washington wants to see a new, more progressive political regime.
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| US Ambassador to Syria James Jeffrey: Washington does not want to remove Mr. Assad, just wants a better government. |
James Jeffrey said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad now needs to compromise as he has failed to win the country's seven-year civil war. "We want to see a change in character, not a change in regime. We are not looking to remove Assad," Jeffrey said at the Atlantic Council.
Estimating that Syria will need between $300 billion and $400 billion for reconstruction, Jeffrey warned that Western powers and international financial institutions would not commit to funding Damascus.
“Western nations certainly aren’t betting money on that disaster unless we get some idea that the (Syrian) government is willing to compromise,” Jeffrey stressed.
Former US President Barack Obama frequently called on President Assad to step down, but the Trump administration has acknowledged several times that Assad could stay.
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| Portraits of Mr. Assad were erected in a Syrian Government military base to demonstrate the soldiers' trust and support for the President. |
