Even if the UN could agree on a resolution, would Assad actually allow a new inspection team unfettered access to Syria? His regime does not exactly have a strong record when it comes to allowing outsiders free rein to roam all over the country. And if he allowed this, what about the rebels? After all, Syria is a country at war.
So it’s hard to see this as anything other than a cardboard proposal. That leads to the next question. Is President Obama looking for a fig-leaf that would allow him to retreat from his threat of military action? Or, on the contrary, is he trying to build the case for striking Syria’s regime by demonstrating that he went the extra mile, ran down every avenue and exhausted every proposal, however unlikely, to avoid war?
We should know the answer soon enough. If the Security Council fails to agree on a Resolution demanding that Syria disarm, then this idea will fall at the first hurdle.