Without Deployment Of Foreign Forces On The Ground, The War Against The Islamic State And Its Timeline Will Be Driven By Local Populations

U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, meets with Prime Minister of Iraq, Haider al-Abadi, in Baghdad, Iraq, Oct. 20, 2015. DoD photo by D. Myles Cullen

Michael Knights, War On The Rocks: Time To Focus On the Wars Within The War Against The Islamic State

Contrary to many assertions, defeating the self-proclaimed Islamic State may not be particularly complex in the parts of Iraq, Syria, Libya and other countries where the group has sought to hold terrain. If local armed forces get organized and receive air support, they will defeat the Islamic State on the battlefield, and in doing so they will tarnish the group’s reputation for success and limit its recruitment potential. But there is one thing standing in the way of this victory: the lack of unity and motivation of its opponents.

In the absence of a major international ground force deployment, the pace of the war will continue to be driven by local actors — meaning the fight will run on their timeline rather than ours. While defeating the Islamic State may be Washington’s top concern, it is not the over-riding priority of most local actors arrayed against the group on the ground. The reality is that there is no cohesive team of allies fighting against the Islamic State and this war is only one of a number of wars being fought or prepared for across the region. In many cases actors are fighting the Islamic State purely to better position themselves for these other conflicts.

WNU Editor: This debate on what should be the timeline in defeating the Islamic State has been ongoing in the U.S. for the past few months .... How Many 'Boots on the Ground' Would It Take to Defeat ISIS? (Brian McMaNus, VICE).