An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

News | March 12, 2017

Dunford: Americans Should Be Proud of Role U.S. Troops Play in Iraq, Syria

By Jim Garamone DoD News, Defense Media Activity

Indigenous Iraqi and Syrian forces have made tremendous progress taking the fight to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, and Americans should be very proud of the role played in the effort by a small number of U.S. troops, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said during an interview.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. Henry Manning, deployed in support of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, assigned to 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, observes a target being struck by coalition artillery near Al Tarab, Iraq, during the offensive to liberate West Mosul from ISIS, March 11, 2017. The strikes were conducted to support the Iraqi security forces' operation to liberate West Mosul from ISIS. CJTF-OIR is the global Coalition to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Hull)
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Henry Manning, deployed in support of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, assigned to 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, observes a target being struck by coalition artillery near Al Tarab, Iraq, during the offensive to liberate West Mosul from ISIS, March 11, 2017. The strikes were conducted to support the Iraqi security forces' operation to liberate West Mosul from ISIS. CJTF-OIR is the global Coalition to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Hull)
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Henry Manning, deployed in support of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, assigned to 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, observes a target being struck by coalition artillery near Al Tarab, Iraq, during the offensive to liberate West Mosul from ISIS, March 11, 2017. The strikes were conducted to support the Iraqi security forces' operation to liberate West Mosul from ISIS. CJTF-OIR is the global Coalition to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Hull)
82nd Airborne advises, assists 9th Iraqi Army Division
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Henry Manning, deployed in support of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, assigned to 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, observes a target being struck by coalition artillery near Al Tarab, Iraq, during the offensive to liberate West Mosul from ISIS, March 11, 2017. The strikes were conducted to support the Iraqi security forces' operation to liberate West Mosul from ISIS. CJTF-OIR is the global Coalition to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Hull)
Photo By: Staff Sgt. Jason Hull
VIRIN: 170311-A-DP764-002
When Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford took over as chairman in October 2015, ISIS had taken vast portions of Iraq and Syria and sought to establish a caliphate. The counter-ISIS strategy he inherited sought to train local forces to combat the terror organization.

This meant small numbers of American and coalition troops would work with Iraqi and vetted Syrian forces. Coalition air assets, special operators and artillery units would support the campaign.

“The Iraqis have to be very proud of their forces,” Dunford said. “But I think we have to be very proud of the coalition, and what U.S. forces have accomplished.”

Iraqi forces pushed back ISIS in Ramadi and Beiji and are now pushing into western Mosul -- the largest city taken by ISIS. The strategy is working, the chairman said, and it’s because young American service members are doing the hard work every day to make it happen.

“If you think of the relatively small number of Americans that had deployed to Iraq over the past 18 to 24 months,” he said, “… if you think about how hard they had to work in conjunction with Iraqi security forces to make sure we learned the lessons from Ramadi and Anbar province … and applied those lessons with the right capabilities in Mosul; I’ll just tell you I am proud of the force that has done that.”

The Task Ahead

There still remains much to do in Iraq, the general said, and he is taking nothing for granted.

In Syria, indigenous forces are isolating Raqqa and pushing back well dug-in ISIS forces on all fronts. There, the progress has been dependent on an even smaller number of Americans who worked to recruit, train and strengthen counter-ISIS forces.

“We sent those guys into an incredibly complex environment,” Dunford said. “We told them to go in collect intelligence, develop relationships, vet people and identify people willing to take the fight to the enemy, train those people, equip those people, support those people, and win.”

And those special operations forces and U.S. Air Force personnel did it -- day after day, little by little, and under extreme circumstances, the chairman said.

“The fact that we are now talking about divergent political challenges, the fact that we are now addressing questions of what happens after Mosul or Raqqa, we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that it is a reflection of the members of the joint force that have actually enabled the indigenous force to take the fight to the enemy,” Dunford said. “Now we have the political opportunities that we didn’t have two years ago to establish the framework for long-term peace and stability, and we owe it to them.”

(Follow Jim Garamone on Twitter: @GaramoneDoDNews)