Pentagon prepared to begin military intervention in Syria

Pentagon has braced itself for a military intervention in Syria that will begin if President Barack Obama takes a decision on it, U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel said Sunday during a visit to Malaysia. He said the Pentagon had asked the Department of Defense to consider various lines of action that might suit different situations and the U.S. military are ready now to choose any of them. Hagel refused to say, which specific actions the U.S. might undertake in Syria, since many factors are to be pondered before one or another specific decision is taken. The list of factors includes the intelligence data on the situation in Syria and the legal aspects of international support for any armed response to the developments unfolding there. Hagel also said he maintains permanent close contacts with Washington as regards the situation in Syria although he is making a week-long tour of Southeast Asia.