CNN quotes Rafik Hariri Center Resident Fellow Faysal Itani on President Obama’s efforts to form a regional coalition to combat the threat of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham:
“There is likely to be a lot of difficulty getting a coalition beyond a limited approach, especially regarding U.S. efforts to attack ISIS in Syria,” said Faysal Itani, a fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East.
Different countries have different reasons to be wary of getting fully involved in the U.S.-led coalition. For example, Turkey has internal political considerations, as well as 49 Turkish diplomats taken hostage by ISIS, Itani noted.
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While Iraq’s new government will fully join the U.S.-led strategy announced this week by Obama, major regional players including Turkey, Egypt and Saudi Arabia were unlikely to be as supportive, Itani said.
Even staunch U.S. ally Jordan, a certain backer, would likely choose what Itani called “quiet cooperation.”
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Itani, however, called the ultimate objective unattainable and said that reality made regional nations cautious about joining the coalition effort.
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“This whole thing has been covered by deep suspicions and doubts about whether the United States is truly committed to destroying this group,” Itani said.