US Secretary of State John Kerry urged other NATO allies to step up against “Islamic State” (IS) in Syria, in his meeting with 27 foreign ministers of NATO in Brussels on Wednesday.
Kerry called on them to do more to strike at IS militants in Iraq and Syria.
The British Parliament is set to vote on whether or not the UK will carry out airstrikes against IS in Syria. Meanwhile, MPs are supposed to have a 10-hour debate on whether the UK should join the US, France, and Russia in bombing targets in Raqqa, the group’s stronghold.
UK Prime Minister David Cameron warned MPs that voting against the airstrikes will risk undermining the strong message that the UK stands with its allies that are already engaged in Syria.
The US said Tuesday it deployed special forces in Iraq to carry out raids against IS in both Iraq and Syria.
“These special operators will over time be able to conduct raids, free hostages, gather intelligence, and capture ISIL leaders,” Reuters quoted US Defence Minister Ashton Carter as saying. “This force will also be in a position to conduct unilateral operations into Syria.”
Earlier this week, Germany confirmed its participation in the military campaign against IS by supplying protection, reconnaissance, and logistics.
“Striking a balance between what we can do and what we can accept political accountability for and making that balance available is what gives us our credibility,” German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said.
French political analyst Gaspard Estrada believes that the main issue concerning the Syrian conflict is related to the diversity of key player’s hidden agendas, which creates a political paralysis. “That’s why, almost five years after the beginning of this conflict, it is hard to see a clear winner of this situation, except for ISIS”, said Estrada.
He also added that after the terrorist attacks in Paris, the French government has been trying to avoid this in order to focus on the attacks against ISIS. “ However, as every key player such as the US, Russia, UK, Saudi Arabia, Iran or Turkey wants to prevail its own hidden agenda, it will be difficult for France to settle a unique international coalition against ISIS”, he said.
