Story Summary

The moderate political and military command structure the United States has been trying to foster within the Syrian opposition appears to be fracturing, a victim of bitter Arab regional rivalries.

The battle for political influence has centered around the opposition’s March 19 appointment of Ghassan Hitto as interim prime minister, under political pressure from Qatar and Turkey.

Robert Ford, the U.S. ambassador to Syria and an informal coordinator of U.S. policy, told a House panel last Wednesday that Hitto is “more Texan than Muslim Brotherhood”.

Hitto’s appointment was sharply rejected by the Syrian opposition leadership the U.S. has been cultivating.

Critics of President Barack Obama’s low-key stance policy on Syria would argue that the opposition wrangling illustrates what happens when the U.S. leaves policy to headstrong allies. The White House could counter that the opposition fracas shows what a mess Syria is – and why the U.S. is wise to keep its distance.

Read more: http://dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Columnist/2013/Mar-28/211726-amid-regional-power-plays-in-syria-us-indecisiveness.ashx#ixzz2Ope2237W
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)