WASHINGTON –
Though significant progress that is being achieved, Defense
Secretary Ash Carter wants to push harder in the campaign to defeat the Islamic
State of Iraq and the Levant, Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook told
reporters today.
“The secretary has not been satisfied with the pace, which
is why he's always talking about accelerating [it],” Cook said. “He is
satisfied we are making progress in Iraq and Syria, but the secretary's view is
the sooner this threat is defeated, the better.”
Carter will continue to push coalition partners, U.S. forces
and commanders to see what else can be done to accelerate ISIL’s defeat
further, he added.
ISIL Fight Needs Close Coordination
“We've seen [significant] developments on the ground in Iraq
and Syria, but this is a fight that requires careful coordination,” the press
secretary said. The coordination is daily between Iraq’s government and the
U.S.-led coalition to drive ISIL out of Fallujah and liberate the city’s
residents, he added.
“We continue to provide support, airstrikes being the most
obvious example of support for the fight in Fallujah,” Cook said, adding that
Army Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland, the Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent
Resolve commander, remains the U.S. military’s point person with the Iraqis in
Baghdad, providing advice and counsel to government officials.
Cook said DoD is very satisfied with the counter-ISIL
campaign that’s led by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and the Iraq
government, with its Counter Terrorist Service forces in command.
Reiterating a key strategy, Cook said DoD constantly looks
at “every single thing that can be done to accelerate this fight and to further
put pressure on ISIL, and we'll continue to do that.”