USA-ALLEN/ISLAMIC STATE The fight against Islamic State could take "a generation or more," says General John Allen

Record ID: 136117

  • Title: USA-ALLEN/ISLAMIC STATE The fight against Islamic State could take "a generation or more," says General John Allen
  • Date: 13th October 2015
  • Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (OCTOBER 13, 2015) (REUTERS) (AUDIO AS INCOMING) GENERAL JOHN ALLEN, U.S. SPECIAL ENVOY FOR COUNTERING THE ISLAMIC STATE, TALKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) GENERAL JOHN ALLEN, U.S. SPECIAL ENVOY FOR COUNTERING THE ISLAMIC STATE, SAYING: "Daesh in Iraq has lost access to 30 percent of the ground and the population that it controlled this time l
  • Embargoed: 28th October 2015 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVAC369J22XSC0VAE6KN68DVX81M
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: ++AUDIO QUALITY AS INCOMING++
    Defeating Islamic State "may take a generation or more," said the U.S. special envoy for countering the Islamic State militant group, retired General John Allen, on Tuesday (October 13).
    Speaking at the Economic Club of New York, Allen spoke about the advances made the global coalition to counter ISIL (Islamic State) inside Iraq.
    "Daesh in Iraq has lost access to 30 percent of the ground and the population that it controlled this time last year. The city of Tikrit has been liberated with 75 percent of its population internally displaced persons returning. And Iraqi forces are making gains on Ramadi, the capital of Anbar. And I spoke to those commanders at the end of last week about their anticipated activities. We anticipate that Ramadi will be the next liberated city in Iraq," said Allen.
    Allen, a retired U.S. Marine four star general and a former commander of NATO and U.S. Forces in Afghanistan is now charged with challenging Islamic State.
    Two weeks ago Russia started bombing anti-government rebels in neighboring Syria to support its ally, President Bashar al-Assad, to the consternation of the West.
    Allen said, "There may be the appearance of short-term tactical benefit as Russia stabilizes and props up the Assad regime. But unless Russia assists Assad in crushing every component of the Syrian opposition, the Assad regime will continue to require foreign support to survive. And as I've said, so far, that support is coming from Russia, Iran and Lebanese Hezbollah. And ladies and gentlemen, there is a problem with that list."
    Allen added, "Let me also observe that Russia has spent, not an insignificant effort attacking virtually all the other opposition groups in Syria, except Daesh, which was the avowed reason for its intervention to begin with. But this is not a contest between the United States and Russia. It is not a reprise of the Cold War. It is in our interest for Russia to be responsible and to be an effective actor on the international stage. Our battle remains and will continue to remain with Daesh."
    Speaking about the worst possible outcome in the region, the retired general said, "There could be the appearance of a Russian-Shia relationship which could strengthen the sectarian conflict in the region. I think that's probably the worst-case scenario in many respects."
    Allen said the fight against Islamic State will be long battle.
    "This will be a long-term conflict with many aspects to be considered. Some days we'll have advances in this conflict and some days we'll have setbacks. But like defeating Daesh's ideology, some aspects of this conflict may take a generation or more. But as an international community, I believe we can and will rise to this challenge."
    The Syrian civil war has raged for more than four years, creating a vacuum in Syria that the Islamic State militant group has exploited to seize territory there and in neighboring Iraq.
    Allen's job includes rallying a U.S.-led coalition that has carried out air strikes against Islamic State fighters in both nations.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register