As Russia and Iran continue to send money and weapons, if not military advisers, to Syria, it is impossible to persist with hypocritical language that can be interpreted only as a formula for inaction. Threatening the Syrian regime with “terrible consequences” if it were to use chemical weapons means only one thing: “Bomb your civilians at will, but use only conventional munitions.”
随着俄罗斯和伊朗不断地给叙利亚运送资金和武器（如果没有提供军事顾问的话），西方国家已经无法坚持那套虚伪的说辞——这些话只能被解释成为不作为开脱的借口。用“可怕的后果”来警告叙利亚政权不要使用化学武器其实只意味着一点:“随便轰炸你自己的平民，不过只可以用传统的武器。”