US Signals Dramatic Shift In Fight Against The Islamic State And The Syrian Conflict

NEW DELHI: The United States has indicated a dramatic shift in its campaign against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, including potential boots on the ground. Meanwhile, Iran -- till recently the US’ main foe in the region -- will be invited to key talks on the Syria conflict, the US has said.

According to a report by Reuters, “The United States is considering sending a small number of special operations forces to Syria and attack helicopters to Iraq as it weighs options to build momentum in the battle against Islamic State, U.S. officials said on Tuesday.”

The above was corroborated by other reports as well as Defence Secretary Ash Carter’s statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee.

"We won't hold back from supporting capable partners in opportunistic attacks against ISIL or conducting such missions directly, whether by strikes from the air or direct action on the ground," Carter said. “We expect to intensify our air campaign, including with additional US and coalition aircraft, to target ISIL with a higher and heavier rate of strikes," he said. "This will include more strikes against ISIL high-value targets as our intelligence improves."

Although Carter did not elaborate on circumstances under which the US might carry out operations on the ground on its own, he said, "Once we locate them, no target is beyond our reach.”

Two US officials, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing deliberations, said any deployments would be narrowly tailored, seeking to advance specific, limited military objectives in both Iraq and Syria.

That option includes temporarily deploying some U.S. special operations forces inside of Syria to advise moderate Syrian opposition fighters for the first time and, potentially, to help call in U.S. air strikes, one official told Reuters. Other possibilities including sending a small number of Apache attack helicopters, and U.S. forces to operate them, to Iraq, as well as taking steps to bolster other Iraqi capabilities needed to claw back territory from Islamic State.

The announcement that the US is contemplating ground troops seriously -- something that has remained off the table till now with President Barack Obama making clear that US engagement in unpopular West Asian wars will not involve boots on the ground -- comes as Iran has been invited to key talks on the Syrian conflict.

The inclusion of Iran is a dramatic shift in foreign policy, with the Shia majority country the main adversary, till recently, of the US and its regional allies, most notably Saudi Arabia. The signing of the Iran nuclear deal paved the way for restoration of ties, with analysts who stated that the deal signals a dramatic change in US policy being proven correct.

The talks on the Syrian conflict, involving US, Russia, Arab and European nations, are scheduled in Vienna for later this week. US state department spokesman John Kirby said it was unclear if Iran's leaders would attend the talks in Vienna. "Whether they come or not is up to Iranian leaders," he said. "It's important for us that key partners are in these discussions... They [Iran] could be a key partner, but they are not now,” Kirby said.

The above is interesting because Iran is Syrian President Bashar al Assad’s closest ally, and the US and its regional allies remain vehemently opposed to Assad. Further, Syria's Western-backed opposition and the US's Gulf Arab allies have long opposed Iran's role in the Syrian war, accusing Iran of spending billions of dollars in propping up Assad’s government and convincing Lebanon's Hezbollah movement to send fighters to Syria to assist pro-Assad forces.