Obama or Petraeus in Syria : No Contest

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said Tuesday the US will deploy an elite special operations force to Iraq. The new force is separate from the earlier 50 US special operations troops deployed to Syria to coordinate with US-backed rebels. That force is not yet in Syria. Pentagon sources say the new force will be 200, including support personnel. Carter said the new force will aid Iraqi security forces and the Kurdish peshmerga. Carter told the US House Armed Services Committee : "These special operators will over time be able to conduct raids, free hostages, gather intelligence, and capture ISIL leaders. This force will also be in a position to conduct unilateral operations into Syria." ~~~~~ President Obama is being pressured to accelerate US-led coalition efforts to combat ISIS, especially after the November Paris attacks. He has always been reluctant to deploy American ground troops, preferring small numbers of advisors and elite forces. Joint Chiefs of Staff head Marine Corps General Joseph Dunford says the new elite force will greatly accelerate the collection of intelligence, and : "will make our operations much more effective. We're fighting a campaign across Iraq and Syria so we're going to go where the enemy is, and we're going to conduct operations where they most effectively degrade the capabilities of the enemy." He should have added that the new mission describes combat in dangerous forward positions, and that means casualties. ~~~~~ On September 22, in testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, retired 4-star General David Petraeus, who oversaw the only successful war effort in Iraq and Syria, advocated increased military intervention in Syria. Petraeus said the US should establish refugee safe zones in Syria and demand that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stop dropping barrel bombs on military and opposition targets. If al-Assad fails to stop, Petraeus said the US should shoot down Syrian aircraft. Petraeus said protecting refugees, and allowing US-backed Syrian rebels to attack al-Assad forces as well as ISIS militants would help the US gain support from Syria’s sunni majority. But, Petraeus warned against an upfront overthrow of the al-Assad regime : “He has to go ultimately, but the keyword there is ultimately, underscored, in bold letters. Because until we have a sense of what will replace him, we need to be very careful not to push him out, because what comes after could actually be even worse.” Petraeus also urged embedding US advisors with Iraqi units at the brigade level and allowing US personnel to order airstrikes for the Iraqis, adding : “In my judgment, increased support for the Iraqi security forces, sunni tribal forces and Kurdish peshmerga is needed.” ~~~~~ But, in late November, after the Russian intervention, Petraeus told PBS he's against putting American troops on the ground in Syria now, saying the country “may be a Humpty Dumpty that can't be put back together again...One doesn't know what the various outcomes could be.” Petraeus said a large US ground force to establish order in Syria is not “sustainable” because there aren’t enough moderate sunni fighters to effectively counter ISIS or the forces of al-Assad, backed by the Russian military. “There are some there. We have been enabling them, supporting them and assisting them for some time,” he said, referring to moderate sunni fighters. "Clearly, if we really get behind them...protect them again from Bashar's air force...I think you would see a lot more....you need to have a hold force that has legitimacy in the eyes of people - that has to be sunni Arab forces." ~~~~~ Dear readers, Carter also told the House : "It puts Syria on notice. At night you won't know who's coming through the window." What a sorry excuse for an Obama strategy. It would be laughable if it weren't for the American soldiers being hung out to dry on Obama's clothesline of failure. If Obama and Congress would listen to General Petraeus, there would be an Iraq and Syria strategy and America's troops would have a real leader as they go into harm's way.