The U.S. Senate is set to vote next week on a resolution authorizing the limited use of force in Syria.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee narrowly approved the resolution Wednesday. Moshe Gershovich teaches history at UNO and is Director of the Schwalb Center for Israel and Jewish Studies and the Middle East Project Fund.
Gershovich says there’s concern that the conflict in Syria could spill over in to other countries in the region.
“I think that certainly the neighbors of Syria, mostly Lebanon, Jordan, Israel of course, but also Turkey and even Iraq are all looking very nervously, and even countries that are not bordering directly, like the Gulf countries and Saudi Arabia, they’re all concerned about the war spilling beyond the boundaries of Syria itself.”
Gershovich says U.S. action in Syria appears inevitable, and should be planned carefully.
“There’s great care to plan things carefully, to take time with it, even when it may seem to some people as a sign of weakness. And this is, of course, the big concern, because one way or another, whether we like it or not, it is American credibility that is on the line.”
The conflict in Syria will be among the topics discussed at a UNO forum on the Middle East September 26th.
Gershovich says there’s also concern that U.S. action could result in retaliation, either against the U.S. or American allies.