US policy of arming rebels in Syria has been a disaster and has led to the growth of Al-Qaeda in the country, while a series of domestic crises has further weakened the Obama administration, freelance journalist John Wight has told RT.

Wight explained why in his view the policy of arming the rebels is causing political division, with some members of the US government privately admitting that it has been a fiasco.

“When the deputy director of the CIA emerges as the voice of reason within the US political establishment, you have a US administration that is in a deep political crisis. It also reveals a growing schism in Washington with regards to US policy towards Syria, which is no surprise given that arming the rebels has been a disaster and it has been from the very start,” said Wight.

He added that a series of domestic crises is part of the reason for a weak foreign policy from Obama.

“There has been an underlying cut within the US political establishment that has been aware that this is a disaster, but for reasons unknown to the rest of the world the Obama administration has felt that they are arming freedom fighters. I think it also reveals the level of domestic crisis within the US, between the hawks represented by such figures as John McCain and Obama, who is increasingly being weakened by series of domestic crisis such as the Bradley Manning trial, the Edward Snowden revelations, the George Zimmerman trial. This administration has not had the best of years, it has to be said, and it has been reflected in its foreign policy,” he added.

The US is also increasingly embarrassed and uncomfortable by the rapid growth of Al-Qaeda in Syria.

“It was uncomfortable with Al-Qaeda being in Syria, but the extremity of its violence and its barbarity can no longer be ignored. It has to be said, if you could equate geopolitics to soccer, then at this point in time Vladimir Putin government is a political equivalent of Barcelona, whereas the Obama administration is Wigan Athletic - no disrespect to Wigan Athletic,” quipped Wight.

The United States tries to apply a lot of pressure on Russia because of Snowden but Russia is not exactly the place and Putin is not the guy you can pressure on, said Andy Mueller-Maguhn, spokesman of the German hacker association Chaos Computer Club.

"He is just resistant to that. Which is very good in a welcome way. Because in this situation Russia could make a difference in allowing this debate to go on because it impacts all the countries, it impacts all the citizens on this planet. And it is pretty obvious, although we could say, you know, the emperor does not wear clothes anymore," Mueller-Maguhn told RT.

The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.