BICOM

On a tour of the Gulf States and the Middle East, Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday spoke forcefully about the need to do more to end President Assad’s regime in Syria.

Cameron visited a refugee camp in Jordan, currently housing 30,000 Syrians who have fled the violence across the border, which has raged during a nineteen-month-old conflict between the government of President Assad and opposition forces.

Cameron candidly said, “The slaughter continues, the bloodshed is appalling, the bad effects it’s having on the region, the radicalisation but also the humanitarian crisis that is engulfing Syria. So let’s work together on really pushing what more we can do, what other steps we can take to hasten the end of this regime.”

The Prime Minister urged new impetus in bringing about Assad’s fall from power. In addition to pledging an additional £14 million to help alleviate the humanitarian crisis, Cameron said “There is an opportunity for Britain, for America, for Saudi Arabia, Jordan and like-minded allies to come together and try to help shape the opposition, outside Syria and inside Syria, and try to help them achieve their goal, which is our goal of a Syria without Assad.”

Cameron is expected to place Syria high on the agenda of a National Security Council meeting that he will chair next week. Reports suggest that he will recommend increasing contact with armed opposition forces within Syria. Previously the UK has only acknowledged contacts with exile groups and political opposition forces.

In a related story, according to reports in the Financial Times and Independent, Turkey will ask its NATO allies to install Patriot missiles on its border with Syria, which would place international troops in the area for the first time. There have been several incidents of Syrian artillery being fired into Turkey over the past several months.