Wednesday, October 15, 2014

The U.S. And Its Middle Eastern Allies Do Not See 'Eye-To-Eye' On How To Combat The Islamic State



The US Remains Focused On IS In Syria And Iraq. Local 'Allies?' Not So Much. -- Dan Murphy, CSM

It's hard to put together a successful coalition when the partners don't agree on priorities and objectives.

An American acquaintance of mine who lives and works in Kabul calls Afghanistan "the graveyard of common sense." But the welter of priorities, contradictions, and claims emanating from the anti-Islamic State coalition the US is trying to lead is already giving the Hindu Khush conflict a run for its money when it comes to head-scratchers.

One of the central difficulties is illustrated by remarks from British Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond, who told The Christian Science Monitor last week that the ultimate goal of the coalition in Syria will be to unseat President Bashar al-Assad, though only after IS is deemed sufficiently degraded.

Read more ....

Update: Serious disagreements remain in U.S.-led coalition battling the Islamic State -- Washington Post

My Comment: This is one of those moments where President Obama must provide the necessary leadership to make the coalition work. I know that this is not going to be an easy task .... and I guess that we will find out in the coming weeks if he is capable of delivering a nified group and strategy to confront the Islamic State.

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