Faced with the dislocation of Syria, Obama warns ...

"... "I think it's important when Assad leaves, and he will leave, to try to preserve stability in that country," Panetta said."The best way to preserve that kind of stability is to maintain as much of the military and police as you can, along with security forces, and hope that they will transition to a democratic form of government. That's the key."
The Bush administration's decision to disband Iraqi security forces, made shortly after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, was an important catalyst for the bloody civil war that followed...."