General: U.S. role in Iraq could grow

NAPLES, Italy – The Pentagon’s top general said Thursday the U.S. military’s reach could extend even further into Iraq if the anti-Islamic State campaign gains momentum, and he held out the possibility of eventually recommending to President Barack Obama that U.S. troops take on the riskier role of calling in airstrikes.

Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the White House’s announcement Wednesday that up to 450 more U.S. troops would be sent to Iraq to invigorate its flagging campaign against the Islamic State is a natural extension of U.S. assistance. He said the support hub the troops will set up will not produce instant results but may serve as a model to be replicated elsewhere in Iraq, possibly requiring even more U.S. troops.

“The campaign is built on establishing these lily pads, if you will, that allow us to continue to encourage the Iraqi security forces (to move) forward, and as they go forward there may be a point where” additional such U.S. hubs are called for to enable the Iraqis to succeed, he told reporters traveling with him to Naples, where he spoke to American troops and conferred with their commanders.

“Sure, we’re looking all the time at whether there might be additional sites necessary. It’s another one of the options that we’re considering.” He added: “It’s very practical, looking at geographic locations, road networks, airfields, places where we can actually establish these hubs.”

The Pentagon said Thursday the U.S. has spent more than $2.7 billion on the war against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria since bombings began in August, and the average daily cost is now more than $9 million.

Dempsey said he has not recommended putting U.S. troops closer to the battlefield to call in airstrikes – a step that critics of the current U.S. approach say is overdue, even though it raises the risk of American casualties. But he pointedly held out the possibility that it may become necessary.

Asked why he has not yet recommended it, Dempsey said he believes it could backfire if not done for the right reasons.

“For discreet, limited offensive operations where Iraq security forces have the momentum I think there is a possibility we’ll do that at some point,” he said. “But as I’ve said, I just don’t think we’re there yet.”

Dempsey spoke the day after the Obama administration announced that U.S. troops would establish a new base at al-Taqqadum, situated between Ramadi and Fallujah, both Islamic State-controlled cities in Anbar province, to advise Iraqi forces and help mobilize and integrate a larger number of Sunni tribal fighters.