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Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), a member of the Senate’s Select Committee on Intelligence and Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement on recent developments in Syria:

“In April, after the Obama administration admitted that the regime of Bashar al-Assad had likely used chemical weapons, I called upon the President to clearly state how he intended to respond to this violation of his own stated red line.  Months later, the administration’s Syria policy is no clearer than it was then.  Instead, we’ve wasted more time chasing the fantasy of a negotiated settlement involving Russia.  This has only given the Assad regime more time to make military gains and resulted in the deaths of more innocent civilians.

“It is in America’s interest for Assad to be removed from power and for Syria to be put on a path toward stability.  The longer we continue to outsource this problem to other actors, the more the country will fragment, spreading instability, violence, and chaos to its neighbors, with implications for U.S. national security for decades to come.

“We are now witnessing in Syria what a world without decisive American leadership looks like.  There is no more time for half measures.  I again call on the President to explain what he will do to respond to this humanitarian and national security nightmare.”