US President Barack Obama is asking Congress for 500 million USD to train and arm vetted members of the Syrian opposition, as the US grapples for a way to stem a civil war that has also fueled the al-Qaida inspired insurgency in neighboring Iraq.
The military training program would deepen the Obama administration's involvement in the more than four-year conflict between rebels and forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad. If approved by Congress, the program would supplement a covert train-and-assistance program run by US intelligence agencies.
The Senate Armed Services Committee has already approved a version of the sweeping defense policy bill authorizing the Defense Department to provide "equipment, supplies, training and defense services" to elements of the Syrian opposition that have been screened. The Senate could act on the bill before the August recess.
The president hinted at the increased support for the opposition forces during a commencement address at West Point last month.
"In helping those who fight for the right of all Syrians to choose their own future, we also push back against the growing number of extremists who find safe haven in the chaos," Obama told the graduating cadets.
Officials said the administration would coordinate with Congress and regional players on the specific types of training and assistance the US would provide the opposition. One potential option would be to base US personnel in Jordan and conduct the training exercise there.
The 500 million USD request is part of a broader 65.8 billion USD overseas operations request that the administration sent to Congress today. The fiscal package, which would fund an array of Pentagon and State Department programs, also includes 1 billion USD to shore up nations bordering Syria that are dealing with an influx of refugees and the threat of extremists.
Iraq in particular is buckling amid lightening gains by the Sunni extremist group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which also has a stronghold inside Syria. The group has seized large swaths of Iraq and seeks to carve out a purist Islamic enclave across both sides of the Syria-Iraq border.
The total overseas contingency package is about 21 billion USD less than the administration said it expected to request when Obama submitted his fiscal year 2015 budget to Congress earlier this year. Officials said the decrease is in part of reflection of Obama's plans to drawdown the US military presence in Afghanistan to about 10,000 forces by the beginning of next year.
