World press on US operation against IS (September 15-16, 2014)President Obama’s top military adviser said on Tuesday that he would recommend deploying United States forces in ground operations against Islamic extremists in Iraq if airstrikes proved insufficient, opening the door to a riskier, more expansive American combat role than the president has publicly outlined, writes the New York Times.General Martin Dempsey, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that he would not exclude the possibility of asking Obama to send American troops to fight the militants on the ground, although Obama has promised that this would not happen.“My view at this point is that this coalition is the appropriate way forward. I believe that will prove true,” General Dempsey said, quoted by the New York Times. “But if it fails to be true, and if there are threats to the United States, then I, of course, would go back to the president and make a recommendation that may include the use of U.S. military ground forces.”"With a vote by the House on authorizing funding for training and arming the Syrian opposition possible on Wednesday afternoon, Republican leaders were carefully gauging support, a sign that the vote could be closer than they would like. Lawmakers on the left and the right threatened to vote against the authorization, for different reasons. Many Republicans refuse to support a plan they say is too circumscribed and halfhearted. Reluctant Democrats argue it is imprudent to arm a group of rebels who have no clear allegiances to the United States," writes the New York Times.
President Obama’s top military adviser said on Tuesday that he would recommend deploying United States forces in ground operations against Islamic extremists in Iraq if airstrikes proved insufficient, opening the door to a riskier, more expansive American combat role than the president has publicly outlined, writes the New York Times.
General Martin Dempsey, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that he would not exclude the possibility of asking Obama to send American troops to fight the militants on the ground, although Obama has promised that this would not happen.
“My view at this point is that this coalition is the appropriate way forward. I believe that will prove true,” General Dempsey said, quoted by the New York Times. “But if it fails to be true, and if there are threats to the United States, then I, of course, would go back to the president and make a recommendation that may include the use of U.S. military ground forces.”
"With a vote by the House on authorizing funding for training and arming the Syrian opposition possible on Wednesday afternoon, Republican leaders were carefully gauging support, a sign that the vote could be closer than they would like. Lawmakers on the left and the right threatened to vote against the authorization, for different reasons. Many Republicans refuse to support a plan they say is too circumscribed and halfhearted. Reluctant Democrats argue it is imprudent to arm a group of rebels who have no clear allegiances to the United States," writes the New York Times.
