John Kerry forming a coalition in the Middle East.
Photo: EPA
US officials: Arab countries offer airstrikes, ground troops vs ISIS
Kerry: US ground troops off the table, some Middle East partners have offered soldiers if needed; Arab allies may contribute in airstrikes against ISIS.
Several Arab countries have offered to join the United States in air strikes against Islamic State targets, US officials said on Sunday, indicating a possible widening of the air campaign against militants who have seized parts of Iraq and Syria.
The officials declined to identify which countries had made the offers but said they were under consideration as the United States begins to identify roles for each country in its emerging coalition against jihadists who have declared a caliphate in the heart of the Middle East.
American aircraft will lead the way, but may be joined in airstrikes by planes from Arab countries as well. (Photo: Reuters.)
The addition of Arab fighter jets could strengthen the credibility of the American-led campaign in a region skeptical of how far Washington will commit to a conflict in which nearly every country has a stake, set against the backdrop of Islam's 1,300-year-old rift between Sunnis and Shi'ites.
"I don't want to leave you with the impression that these Arab members haven't offered to do air strikes because several of them have," a senior US State Department official told reporters in Paris.
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The official said the offers were not limited to air strikes on Iraq. "Some have indicated for quite a while a willingness to do them elsewhere," the official said. "We have to sort through all of that because you can't just go and bomb something."
Ground troops
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State John Kerry said he was "extremely encouraged" by the pledges of military assistance against Islamic State militants by countries inside and outside the Middle East and that some nations had also offered ground troops.Kerry has been touring the Middle East to try to secure backing for US efforts to build a coalition to fight the Islamic State militants who have grabbed territory in Syria and Iraq.
John Kerry visiting with the leader of the Arab League in Cairo amid efforts to win Arab allies in the fight against ISIS. (Photo: AP)
"We have countries in this region, countries outside of this region, in addition to the United States, all of whom are prepared to engage in military assistance, in actual strikes if that is what it requires. And we also have a growing number of people who are prepared to do all the other things," Kerry said in remarks aired on Sunday on the CBS program "Face the Nation".
On the CNN program "State of the Union," White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough was asked if this coalition would need ground troops beyond opposition forces in Syria and Kurdish and government forces in Iraq.
"Ultimately to destroy ISIL we do need to have a force, an anvil against which they will be pushed - ideally Sunni forces," he said.
Kerry reiterated President Barack Obama's statement that US ground troops would not be used against the Islamic State.
A Shia volunteer to the Irai Army. (Photo: AFP)
"We're not looking to put troops on the ground," Kerry said. "There are some who have offered to do so, but we are not looking for that at this moment anyway," Kerry said. He did not identify the countries.
On Thursday, Kerry won the backing for a "coordinated military campaign" from 10 Arab countries - Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and six Gulf states including rich rivals Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
"This is a strategy coming together as the coalition comes together and the countries declare what they are prepared to do," Kerry said in the interview, taped on Saturday in Egypt.
"I've been extremely encouraged to hear from all of the people that I've been meeting with about their readiness and willingness and to participate," Kerry added.
McDonough also said US President Barack Obama would meet on Tuesday with General John Allen, his newly appointed special presidential envoy for building the coalition against Islamic State. McDonough also said Kerry would testify before the US Congress on the matter this week.
