The Two Syrias

Here's Tony Snow, at today's press White House press briefing:

"Syrian officials came to the aid of the Americans, the U.S. government is grateful for the assistance the Syrians provided in going after the attackers," White House spokesman Tony Snow said.

"We are hoping they will become an ally and make the choice of fighting against terrorists."

Nice diplomatic sentiment. Here's reality:

NICOSIA (Reuters) - A ship bound for Syria from North Korea and detained in Cyprus on an Interpol alert for suspected arms smuggling was carrying air defense systems, Cypriot authorities said yesterday.

The shipment was billed as weather-observation equipment on the freight manifest of the Panamanian-flagged Grigorio 1 and officials said the Syrian government had asked Cyprus to release the seized consignment.

“To my knowledge, their name doesn’t appear anywhere on the manifest as the consignee, but they have become involved,” a senior shipping industry source in Nicosia told Reuters.

He said the vessel had been tracked over a long period of time.

The ship was carrying 18 truck-mounted mobile radar systems and three command vehicles. “The radars on the 18 trucks appear to be part of an air defense system,” a police spokeswoman said. Pipes also found on board were irrigation pipes, she added. (source: LGF)

Which Syria do you think is the real Syria, and which the poser? It was sure nice of them to rush to the protection of our embassy, but let's give them a "thank you" wave, not a hug.

Related Tags: Syria, War on terror, Terrorism