U.S. To Provide Non-Military Aid To Syrian Rebels

04:43

February 28, 2013

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, second from left, talks to British Prime Minister William Hague, left, as Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi, third from left, and Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr, second from right, are seen during an international conference on Syria at Villa Madama, Rome, Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013. (Riccardo De Luca/AP)

In what's being described as a significant policy shift, Secretary of State John Kerry has announced that the U.S. will begin providing direct assistance to the military wing of the Syrian opposition.

The aid would be food rations and medical supplies, but not weapons.

Senior administration officials tell The New York Times that a training mission for the rebels is underway at an unspecified military base in the region, representing the deepest American involvement so far in the two-year-old Syrian civil war.

New York Times: U.S. Pledges $60 Million to Syrian Opposition

Guest:

Mark Landler, reporter for The New York Times.

This segment aired on February 28, 2013.

policy