Two US Navy destroyers armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles are in position and ready to be called into action, among other assets including jets and submarines should President Donald Trump make good on his threat to order a military strike on targets in Syria.
Trump caught most of his aides
and the Pentagon off-guard on Wednesday by declaring on Twitter that
"nice and new and 'smart'" missiles would soon be fired toward Syria --
an announcement that came before an agreement had been reached between
key US allies, multiple American and Western officials said.
Top
military officials were at the White House on Wednesday afternoon to
discuss options for Syria, according to senior aides, and a decision on
how to respond to the weekend's chemical attack had not yet been made
when Trump took to Twitter, people familiar with the discussions said.
White
House press secretary Sarah Sanders insisted Wednesday that a missile
strike remains one of the many options on the table and said the
President's tweet does not complicate the
Defense Secretary James Mattis said
Wednesday that the US is "still assessing the intelligence" on the
recent chemical attack but noted that the US military is on standby
should Trump give the order for a strike.
"We stand ready to provide military options if they are appropriate as the President determined," he said.
Mattis
also ignored a question about whether he was concerned about
telegraphing US military moves in Syria, a question appearing to refer
to Trump's earlier tweet on Wednesday.
Did Trump tip his hand?
Trump's
tweet could force military leaders to modify their analysis related to
"targets, timing and teamwork," according to CNN military analyst John
Kirby.
Satellites and other US
intelligence aircraft are watching closely for signs that Syrian leader
Bashar al-Assad, as well as Russian units -- are using the advance
notice to move aircraft, weapons and personnel out of the way of a
potential attack.
However, warning of an imminent strike
could force US military officials to modify their list of potential
targets -- which could range from airfields or chemical storage sites to
locations in Assad's backyard of Damascus depending on the intended
message.
"It is possible that
strike packages and potential targets should be adjusted based on what
you see on the ground," Kirby said, noting that both the Russians and
Syrian regime have been given plenty of indicators as to the type of
strike the US may be considering.
Targeting
air defense systems or locations closer to Damascus would send a
stronger message but would risk more casualties as well as increase the
chances of escalating the conflict, he added.
Russia and Syria quickly responded to
Trump's threat on Wednesday. Syria's Foreign Ministry said it was not
surprised by the US' "reckless escalation" via Trump's tweets, the
state-run news agency SANA reported, while Russian Foreign Ministry
spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a Facebook post that "smart missiles
should fly toward terrorists, not the legal government that has been
fighting international terrorism for several years on its territory."
Kremlin
spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that Russia hopes all parties
involved in Syria will avoid any steps that could "significantly
destabilize" an already "fragile situation."
Peskov
added there were no plans for Putin to call Trump, French President
Emmanuel Macron or UK Prime Minister Theresa May amid the crisis.
The
US did provide Russia with advance warning via military channels
shortly prior to the April 2017 missile strike on the Syrian air base
believed responsible for a previous chemical weapons attack. That
warning was made to avoid casualties among Russian military advisers in
Syria. Despite the advance notice, Russia made no effort to shoot down
the American missiles.
What firepower is available?
In addition to having two destroyers
nearby, it is possible the US also has unacknowledged submarines
positioned off the coast of Syria ready to fire satellite-guided, highly
precise Tomahawk cruise missiles -- the very type of smart missiles the
President tweeted about.
"Don't
discount the possibility of Tomahawk-capable submarines in the region,"
Kirby said. "It is not unusual for them to be in the Mediterranean, and
they have been used to hit targets in North Africa in the past."
The
US also has stealth F-22 fighter jets stationed in Qatar which could be
used to evade the Syrian regime's Russian-made air defense systems, but
the use of piloted aircraft comes with a substantial risk as those
systems are considered very capable, Kirby said.
"Especially
given deterrent threats from Russian officials, the United States will
be hesitant to risk American pilots in these strikes and will most
likely opt for long-range strikes from submarines or aircraft,"
according to Adam Mount, Senior Fellow and Director of the Defense
Posture Project at the Federation of American Scientists and a former
senior fellow at the Center for American Progress.
"New, stealthy JASSM missiles could be delivered by B-1B and B-52 (and now likely F-15E and F-16)," Mount said.
"JASSMs
do target recognition and terminal guidance with infrared sensors,
making them both 'new' and 'smart,' he added. "The United States has
developed a new generation of electronic warfare munitions and decoys
designed to help US strikes reach their targets, which could also see
action."
However, the US does hope
French and British aircraft as well as ships will be part of the
strikes as both nations continue to weigh the possibility of a joint
response.
CNN has previously
reported that Trump discussed possible options on Syria with both French
President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Theresa May.
Macron has said that any French strikes
against the Syrian regime would target chemical facilities, and a
British government official told CNN on Wednesday that preparations are
being made by the United Kingdom for possible action but cautioned the
political decision has not yet been made.
The
Daily Telegraph in London reported Wednesday that May has ordered
British submarines to move within missile range of Syria in readiness
for strikes against the Assad regime that could begin as early as
Thursday night.
May will host a Cabinet meeting on Thursday "to discuss the response to Syria," a Downing Street spokesperson confirmed to CNN.
Speaking
in the British city of Birmingham on Wednesday, May said "all the
indications" are that the Syrian regime was responsible for a chemical
weapons attack in Douma, adding that the use of such weapons "cannot go
unchallenged."
May has not confirmed whether the UK government is considering military action.
France has 10 Rafale fighter jets
stationed in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates which could be armed
with "storm shadow" missiles that can fly for more than 155 miles,
according to the French Ministry of Defense and retired general
Dominique Trinquand.
This means jets could strike without having to fly over Syria and avoid Russia's anti-aircraft defenses, they told CNN.
France
could also launch strikes from the frigate Aquitaine, a warship
equipped with 16 cruise missiles and 16 surface-to-air missiles or send
Rafale jets from its national territory and organize refueling flights
to get them to the area.
This article has been updated.
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