But “we confirm that Iraq has enough men and resolve to defeat Daesh and other similar criminal groups”, he said.
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The proposed plan, announced during a visit to Baghdad, would increase the total number of US military personnel in Iraq and Syria to 20,000. “The only way you can destroy the caliphate is with a ground component”.
“We should be honest that to be successful, airstrikes will have to be combined with ground forces”.
Apparently it’s more than just “the Republican side” that thinks U.S. troops in Iraq is the best move, as U.S. Department of Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced shortly after Clinton’s interview ran that troops would be deployed there “to conduct raids, free hostages, gather intelligence and capture” ISIS leadership, reported Politico.
Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham said Monday the US needs to commit more troops to the Middle East in the fight against ISIS or, ultimately, risk an attack on American soil.
President Barack Obama last month authorised no more than 50 special operations forces to deploy to northern Syria in a non-combatant, advisory role to help co-ordinate local ground troops and anti-IS coalition efforts.
Clinton also ruled out sending American combat troops into Syria – calling it a “non-starter” and criticized Republicans who has suggested it – while leaving open the door to more special forces and trainers. “[Arab] countries for a long time have not seen what’s happening as a direct threat to them”, McCain told reporters.
USA senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham called for 100,000 coalition troops to be placed in Syria, mostly from Sunni regional states but also including Americans, to fight the Islamic State (IS) group.
But asked if she would be prepared to shoot down a Russian military plane if they were to violate the airspace – as apparently happened in Turkey – Clinton denied it would ever come to that.
“What the United States wants to do, as I said before, is to use ISIL as a means for toppling the regime of President Assad”, he added.
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“I’m confident in the wisdom of the American people on that front”. Meanwhile, some US counter-terrorism experts fear increased involvement would only strengthen the Islamic State.
