President Obama announced Monday that he had approved the deployment of an additional 250 U.S. troops to Syria to fight the ISIS terror group.
(FOX)- Obama made the announcement during a speech in Hannover, Germany at the conclusion of a week-long trip where ISIS was a focus of his meetings with world leaders in Saudi Arabia and Great Britain, as well as Germany.
Obama, touting recent gains against ISIS, said the added troops would help “to keep up this momentum.” The move will bring the number of personnel to roughly 300, up from about 50 special operations forces currently there.
“They’re not going to be leading the fight on the ground, but they will be essential in providing the training and assisting local forces,” Obama said.
Obama revealed his decision a week after Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced that more than 200 U.S. troops soon will be headed to Iraq, where local forces are also battling ISIS militants who control areas of that country.
Senior U.S. officials have been touting the success of the forces in Syria, including their ability to generate critical intelligence that gives the U.S.-led coalition a better view of happenings on the ground, including efforts to target insurgents.
Obama said that U.S.- European collaboration must extend to the threat posed by the ISIS. And as he announced the U.S.’s deeper involvement, he urged this continent to step up, too.