December 21, 2015 | Quote

Chris Christie Mostly Wrong That Barack Obama Invited Russia Into Military Role In Syria

The multi-sided conflict in Syria had already been bedeviling policymakers and diplomats for years by the time Russia began launching airstrikes there on Sept. 30, 2015. But did the United States “invite” Russia to pursue this sudden escalation? That’s what New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said during the Republican presidential debate in Las Vegas.

“I'll tell you what reckless is,” Christie said during the debate on Dec. 15, 2015. “What’s reckless is is calling Assad a reformer. What reckless is allowing Russia to come into Crimea and Ukraine. What reckless is is inviting Russia into Syria to team with Iran. That is reckless. And the reckless people are the folks in the White House right now. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are the reckless people.”

This statement includes a lot of charges by Christie. But for this fact-check, we’ll zero in on Christie’s claim that the Obama administration invited Russia into Syria.

“I don’t think Christie meant it to be taken literally,” said Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “Obviously we did not invite Russia in. But what I think he’s very clearly referring to is a weakness that led to Russia coming in. The fact that the administration has had an awful Syria policy has moved beyond a matter of opinion.”

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Issues:

Russia Syria