US special forces to arrive in Syria ‘very soon’ as Assad hails Russian airstrikes
Dozens of US special operations troops will arrive in Syria “very soon” as promised by president Barack Obama’s administration, a senior official has said.
The troops will help organise local forces battling the self-proclaimed Islamic State in northern Syria, according to special envoy Brett McGurk.
Syria’s only hope of peace is if Assad is removed
“They will be going in very soon,” McGurk told CBS television’s Face the Nation.
His comments came as Syrian president Bashar al-Assad said his troops were advancing on “nearly every front” in the country’s four-year civil war thanks to Russian airstrikes that began in September.
The embattled president also said he favoured new peace talks to be hosted in Moscow, but stressed that the Syrian conflict could not be resolved without “defeating terrorism”.
In an interview with Hong Kong-based Phoenix television, Assad said the situation in Syria had “improved in a very good way” since Russia began airstrikes on 30 September.
“Now I can say that the army is making advancement in nearly every front… in many different directions and areas on the Syrian ground,” he said, speaking in English.
Russia has coordinated its airstrikes with Damascus, unlike the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group, which Assad and his government criticise as ineffectual.
The army has made minimal progress on the ground, according to groups monitoring the war, though the Russian strikes have reportedly boosted morale among government troops and supporters.