US Special Envoy Says Country's Only Military Goal In Syria Defeat Of IS

US Special Envoy Says Country's Only Military Goal in Syria Defeat of IS

The US special envoy to the international coalition fighting the Islamic State terrorist group (ISIS, banned in Russia), Brett McGurk, said on Saturday at the Doha Global Forum that Washington's only military mission in Syria and the reason for the US troops' presence in the country was the complete elimination of terrorists.

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th December, 2018) The US special envoy to the international coalition fighting the Islamic State terrorist group (ISIS, banned in Russia), Brett McGurk, said on Saturday at the Doha Global Forum that Washington's only military mission in Syria and the reason for the US troops' presence in the country was the complete elimination of terrorists.

In late September, US National Security Adviser John Bolton said that the United States would not withdraw its forces from Syria until Iran or its proxies had no military presence in the country.

"[As for] the military mission in Syria, that's why we have forces on the ground, the military mission is the defeat of ISIS ... There is no other military mission," McGurk said when asked about the US leadership remarks regarding the Iranian forces' presence in Syria.

McGurk indicated that the United States had a number of other goals in Syria, beyond the mentioned military campaign, with a number of US diplomats working with military partners on the ground in order to ensure the country's stabilization.

The United States has been seeking Iranian forces withdrawal from Syria, insisting that their presence in the country reduces the possibility of achieving a political settlement to the crisis and hinders the struggle against the Islamic State terrorist group.

The Syrian civil war has been raging for over seven years, with government forces fighting numerous terror groups and opposition factions. Iran along with Russia and Turkey are guarantors of the Syrian ceasefire agreement.