THE WIDENING CONFLICT: HOW SYRIA'S CIVIL WAR IS ALREADY THREATENING ITS NEIGHBOR JORDAN

Some middle east observers already disquieted by the fracturing of the insurrection in Syria are casting a worried eye towards its neighbor Jordan.

If anyone had to guess where the conflict would have spread first, Jordan might not have been the immediate guess. But because of Jordan's ties to the United States and the fact that every day more American troops are headed to Jordan, Bashar al Assad has already set his sights against his neighbor. 

That al Assad is itching for a confrontation is becoming clearer each day. The rhetoric employed by the Assad regime leaves no doubt what they think of Jordan's ties with the U.S. 

But al Assad is accusing Jordan primarily of being a launching pad for rebels that are crossing the Syrian border to 'attack the Syrian troops'.

In a candid statement just this week, Defence Secretary Hagel echoed in some way al Assad's accusation by revealing that already the U.S. presence is over 200.  While the US Defence Department claims that the troops are there to help secure any dangerous weapons, including chemical and nuclear and for training purposes.  

Jordan however is in the hot seat.  They have even denied that the troops are there to train and assist Jordanian personnel.  They say in fact that the US is but a small contingent of an anticipated gathering of international forces that will take part in a military exercise.  

But Jordan is in a precarious position.  Impoverished and financial precarious, it needs the US subsidies and aid that keep it from falling into a politically unstable situation. If Jordan were to suffer financially, if could be engulfed in the protests and civil unrest that has spread throughout north Africa and the middle east.  

Even through the denials, there is evidence that Jordan is allowing rebels to use its border to transit or escape during fighting.  This clear exposure of its intentions has caused anger from Bashar al Assad that threatens to become more than just a war of words.  

In truth most of the middle east experts think that Jordan in many ways is already enveloped by the Syrian conflict. 

To make matters even worse, Jordan is hosting half a million Syrian refugees.  What some argue is that Syria could very well strike first, without clear provocation, even using chemical weapons against Jordan.  

Even if Jordan says it wants to remain alien to the conflict, and does not want to engage militarily, the fact remains that is already knee deep in the mechanism of war.

Source: France 24/ 4.18.13