As the crisis in Syria enters its third year and the death toll exceeds 70,000 , America 's values and interests are increasingly at risk as others fill the void left by our inaction . I saw this firsthand during a recent trip to the Middle East during which I met with Jordanians , Syrians and Israelis concerned about the fallout of a brutal civil war . In Jordan , the government and international aid agencies are scrambling to deal with more than 400,000 refugees fleeing the fighting , many of whom are women and children . Meanwhile , our allies in Israel are increasingly concerned about the nightmare scenario of chemical and advanced anti-aircraft weapons falling into the hands of terrorist groups such as Hezbollah or Islamist groups linked to al Qaeda . In April 2011 , when the death toll stood in the low hundreds , I called on President Barack Obama to support the Syrian people 's desires for freedom and an end to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad 's regime . I proposed a series of measures to immediately isolate al-Assad , including tough economic sanctions and severance of diplomatic ties . Unfortunately , this and similar calls by Democrats and Republicans went unheeded at the time , only to be implemented by this administration months later -- slowly , hesitantly and ineffectually . There are now two conflicts underway in Syria . One is the battle to oust al-Assad . The second is the emerging fight for control of a post-Assad Syria . This latter fight will pit more moderate groups within the armed opposition against Sunni Islamists . We need to ensure that the responsible actors win this battle and that Syria is no longer an ally of Iran and a staging point for destabilizing terror . America must not turn its back on the Syrian people . Our interests are still served by the rapid resolution of the conflict and the removal of al-Assad from power . What might a successful Syria strategy look like ? First , we can not expect Syria 's post-Assad rulers to respect our interests and wishes if we are not willing to support them in their fight . While recent reports indicate that the rebels are increasingly in possession of much of the weaponry they have long sought , what they need now is ammunition . We should do everything possible to get moderate elements within the opposition the ammunition , intelligence support , training and other equipment they need to help hasten al-Assad 's fall . Ghitis : Syrian war is everybody 's problem . While some worry that the Syrian opposition is entirely anti-American and made up of radicals , the reality is that Islamist forces remain in the minority . Continued inaction , however , will only empower these anti-American elements of the opposition . We thus need to work more closely with groups such as the Syrian Opposition Council . The SOC has made great strides in unifying the more reasonable elements of the opposition and attempting to be inclusive of Syria 's minorities , but it has suffered from slow and lukewarm support from Washington . The Obama administration should back their efforts to form a transitional government that can begin to govern rebel-controlled areas of Syria as soon as possible and put to rest any doubts about our support . The additional nonlethal assistance to the SOC and to armed opposition groups announced by Secretary of State John Kerry in Rome on Thursday is a positive step , but much more needs to be done . Just as the Berlin airlift in the late '40s created a generation of Germans who remembered American support in their hour of need , Syrian children suffering today in refugee camps should understand that the U.S. government and American people care about their plight and are taking action to assist them . Although most of it can not be traced back to us , the U.S. has actually provided hundreds of millions of dollars in humanitarian aid and nonlethal assistance since the conflict began . However , in the camps outside of Syria , international aid agencies , often supported primarily by U.S. funds , have not made the source of their funding apparent to the refugees they are hosting . Similarly , citing security concerns , the administration has been slow to brand U.S. assistance inside of Syria and make its origins clear to the populace . Even if these concerns are justified , there are ways to work with aid groups to utilize social media and with local leaders to highlight America 's humanitarian assistance at work . We should also be more willing to rely not just on international nongovernmental organizations and aid agencies , but also use the moderate groups we wish to strengthen as conduits for aid , helping them legitimize themselves with the Syrian people . We need decisive American leadership to avoid the worst outcomes in Syria . As one Syrian opposition figure recently told me , as long as `` the United States remains not present , '' the crisis is likely to only be prolonged . This may result in a post-Assad Syria that is a failed state in which Islamic radicals and Iranian agents with little interest in a liberal order flourish . For the sake of our security interests and the safety of our allies , we can and must do more to prevent such an outcome .
Marco Rubio : U.S. must step in with more assistance or other actors will fill void . He says Obama 's slowness to act to end bloodshed risks increasing instability in region . He says U.S. should help moderates get ammunition and training to oust al-Assad . Rubio : U.S. should back opposition ; the Syrian people will remember U.S. help .