Obama set to hash out strategy to counter Islamic State

Obama set to hash out strategy to counter Islamic State

PanARMENIAN.Net - U.S. President Barack Obama will hash out a strategy to counter Islamic State on Tuesday, Oct 14, with military leaders from some 20 countries including Turkey and Saudi Arabia amid growing pressure for the U.S.-led coalition to do more to stop the militants' advance, Reuters reported.

Some three weeks before U.S. congressional elections viewed largely as a referendum on Obama's leadership, the president will aim to show the U.S. public and allies abroad that he is committed to a plan to "degrade" and "destroy" the group that has taken over large swaths of Iraq and Syria.

Obama will attend a meeting led by General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, with foreign defense chiefs at Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington at 3 pm EDT to discuss the coalition's work.

Representatives from Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates were expected to attend.

Colonel Ed Thomas, Dempsey's spokesman, said no major policy decisions were expected at the meeting, adding: “It’s about coming together in person to discuss the vision, the challenges, the way ahead.”

Despite previous reports, Turkey has not reached a new agreement to let the United States use its Incirlik air base in the fight against Islamic State but reached an agreement with Washington on training Syrian rebels, sources at the Turkish Prime Minister's office told reporters on Monday, without saying who would train the insurgents or where.

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