The State Department yesterday posted that Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration Anne C. Richard will be in Amman through tomorrow meeting with government officials and humanitarian workers. Richard’s visit comes as the country’s refugee crisis – triggered by the war in neighboring Syria – threatens to trigger violence:

Some 720 Syrians managed to cross into Jordan early Monday, the Jordan Armed Forces said, while some 240 Syrians were repatriated upon their request. Violence intensified along the Jordanian-Syrian border for the third straight day, cutting off most access routes into Jordan.

Earlier this month the U.S. announced that it was leaving Patriot missile batteries and F-16’s in Jordan, after the assets had been transferred to the region for the multinational Eager Lion exercises in that country. The decision was not unexpected:

The White House this week approved arming Syrian rebels, an effort that is expected to mainly take place in Jordan. The U.S. military has proposed options to the White House to safeguard that effort, including a limited no-fly zone inside Syria that would be enforced from Jordanian territory to protect Syrian refugees and rebels who would train there, according to U.S. officials. “The Department of Defense continues to plan for a wide range of contingencies but the United States has not made any decision to establish a no fly zone over Syria or within Jordanian airspace,” said Pentagon spokesman George Little.

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