WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – US President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton opened the window of opportunity for the Islamic State (ISIL or Daesh in Arabic) by arming the enemies of Syrian President Bashar Assad, Republican presidential candidate Senator Rand Paul told a national debate.
"Arming the enemies of Assad was a mistake," Paul said in the fifth Republican presidential debate in the Venetian Hotel, Las Vegas on Tuesday night.
The Daesh terrorist group, outlawed in a number of countries, including Russia, is stronger because Obama administration policy and obsession with regime change in Syria had opened up a safe space for them to grow and get established, Paul argued.
"If you believe in regime change you're mistaken… We need to focus on killing the bad guys not getting caught in Middle East civil wars that don't keep America safe," the senator said.
Paul continues to trail in national opinion polls of potential Republican voters.
