WASHINGTON, January 17 (Sputnik) — Several hundred US military trainers could be given orders to deploy in next four to six weeks to train and equip the Syrian opposition, the Pentagon said Friday.
“I think you will see orders for some of those troops over the next four to six weeks, some could be given orders very soon, perhaps as soon within the next week,” Pentagon Press Secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby said at a Pentagon press briefing.
The training sites will be located in Turkey, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, where the Pentagon plans to produce 5,000 fighters by as early as the end of the year. As the program develops as many as 15,000 Syrian opposition fighters could be trained in the coming years, according to the Pentagon.
This week a US team led by Army Major General Michael Nagata and US Special Envoy for Syria Daniel Rubinstein visited Istanbul, Turkey, where they discussed the training program with members of the Syrian political opposition, US Central Command announced early this week.
Kirby said trainees would defend their communities, go on the offensive against the Islamic State, also known by the acronyms ISIS or ISIL, as well as “play their part to support the political opposition as they put pressure on the Assad regime.” Potential Syrian fighters must first be vetted; a process that the Pentagon said has slowed down the program to field an indigenous Syrian opposition army.
