Sen. Lankford: US needs regional allies against Islamic State

Republican Senator
kurdistan24.net

WASHINGTON, DC, United States (Kurdistan24) – Senator James Lankford, Oklahoma’s junior senator, recently told Kurdistan24 the new US administration will need to build “as many allies as possible in as many places as possible” to confront the threat from the Islamic State (IS)

Lankford stated, “We have to be able to deal with [IS] as a worldwide threat, because they are a worldwide threat,” noting that IS is in “multiple regions.”

“Those individuals who are willing to engage and fight with us, we should encourage them to engage and fight with us,” he stated.

The Republican senator did not explicitly say the US should work with Kurdish fighters, whether in the Kurdistan Region or Rojava. But, of course, the Obama administration is already doing so, and Kurdish fighters are widely recognized as the most effective combatants against IS in the region.

Indeed, the spokesman for coalition forces in Baghdad, Colonel John Dorrian, recently told the Washington press corps the Peshmerga had been “absolutely marvelous.” Additionally, Captain Jeff Davis, Director of Press Operations at the Pentagon, told Kurdistan24 the Peshmerga had done “the lion’s share of the fighting” against IS. 

Lankford is the only senator who sits on both the Homeland Security Committee and on the Intelligence Committee. The two assignments provide him a unique perspective on the threat to the US homeland from IS. His top national security priority is the fight against that terrorist organization.

Lankford believes “a coalition force that involves Middle East partners must root out and utterly defeat [IS] with state-of-the-art intelligence and brute force.”

His statement suggests the need for far more vigorous action than the relatively slow and measured approach President Barack Obama has pursued while fighting IS for the past two and a half years.

“Our top priority must be to prevent [IS’] ideology and barbaric acts from coming to the United States,” Lankford has said. 

Lankford has now embraced a like-minded figure in the form of retired Marine Corps General John F. Kelly, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Homeland Security. After stressing the need for strong leadership in that department, Lankford hailed Kelly’s “impressive military experience and his vision” for the department, while expressing his optimism that the Senate will soon confirm the retired officer's appointment. 

 

Editing by Delovan Barwari 

(Rahim Rashidi conducted the interview in Washington, DC)