General Keane's strategy to defeat ISIS would include increasing the number of U.S. advisors, trainers, and air controllers in Syria from about 3,000 to around 10,000. “We have to have a sense of urgency about ourselves. The more time we take, guess what? The more killing takes place, the more barbarism takes place, the more opportunity ISIS has to hurt Americans.”
Keane further explains his strategy in an article published in the Cipher Brief (https://www.thecipherbrief.com) that “the only way to defeat an enemy who is holding terrain is to conduct a decisive ground campaign supported by effective air power, similar to what the U.S. and its allies did to regain territory from the Germans and Japanese during WWII, and from the North Koreans who occupied South Korea during the Korean War."
Keane goes on to say that "instead of providing minimal support to Iraqi forces, which has been the White House plan to date, the U.S. must once and for all provide all required advisors, trainers, and air controllers needed to dramatically increase the combat effectiveness of the Iraqi Army, Sunni tribal force, and Kurdish Peshmerga. The output of trained units should be at least three times greater, and the U.S. troop requirement would be about ten thousand."
General Keane goes on to suggest the building of an Arab/NATO coalition to support both an air and ground campaign to defeat ISIS instead of the current White House plan of dragging out the war. "The ISIS terrorists continue to kill and recruit worldwide, and they inspire their followers to kill Americans. We need a sense of urgency and resolve to win, with a coherent decisive strategy to defeat ISIS."
