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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Hagel: U.S. ships nearer to Syria

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel during a news conference Friday. (Associated Press)

The Pentagon is moving naval forces closer to Syria in preparation for a possible decision by President Barack Obama to order military strikes, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel suggested on Friday.

Hagel declined to describe any specific movements of U.S. forces. He said Obama asked that the Pentagon prepare military options for Syria and that some of those options “require positioning our forces.”

U.S. Navy ships are capable of a variety of military actions, including launching Tomahawk cruise missiles, as they did against Libya in 2011.

“The Defense Department has a responsibility to provide the president with options for contingencies, and that requires positioning our forces, positioning our assets, to be able to carry out different options – whatever options the president might choose,” Hagel said.

Associated Press