Local Syrian wants to hear long-term goal from POTUS

A local Syrian man says he’s on board with the diplomatic plan to have Syrian relinquish its chemical weapons to the international community.

“Getting rid of weapons is – in my opinion – good,” says Wajeeh Demetree.  “But it has to be in the context of peace.  Not just in the context of punishment.”

He says his friends and family overseas in Syria are feeling more relieved this week following the news.

“They’re thinking that this might be positive, and they would avert getting hit with U.S. missiles or fire power,” he says.

Demetree says he wants to hear a long-term plan from President Obama because it’s hard to determine what will happen with diplomacy in the short term.

“What happens afterwards?  Are we going to push the Syrians along with this to a peace talk?”

He wants to know if the President is pursuing peace talks with the military option remaining open, or if he’s just choosing one or the other.

“So, which one are we doing?” he asks.

He says there’s no plan laid out as far as how the conflict will resolve and move towards peace talks.

“I want to hear all of that, not just ‘you know, this is a grave incident, we gotta deal with it.’ That’s not enough,” he says.

In reference to President Obama’s address to the nation on Tuesday, Demetree says the President discounted retaliation from Syria and Iran.

“What if that’s not true?

Demetree says the President needs to keep all possible scenarios on the table.