US and UK defense chiefs discuss Syria
美英国防部长讨论叙利亚问题

US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter has discussed Middle East issues, including the Syria crisis with his UK counterpart Michael Fallon in London. Carter said that Russia's actions in Syria are a danger to the region and to Russia itself. He also said Washington is set to overhaul its strategy in Syria.

Yet another call by the United States for the Kremlin to rethink its Middle East strategy... US defense chief Ash Carter described Russia's recent actions in Syria as "illogical and self-defeating", and urged the Kremlin to instead push for a political solution in the region.

Meanwhile, Carter said the United States is looking to adjust its failed strategy against Islamic State in Syria. He said US President Barack Obama has approved numerous changes to the Pentagon's military training program for Syrian rebels, and the President would speak on the matter within hours.

"We have been looking now for several weeks at ways to improve that programme. I wasn't satisfied with early efforts in that regard and so we are looking at different ways to achieve basically the same kind of strategic objective, which is the right one, which is to enable capable motivated forces on the ground to retake territory from ISIL and reclaim Syrian territory from extremism," Carter said.

Carter said the work that the US has done with the Kurds in northern Syria could be example of an effective approach, which would be pursued with other groups in other parts of Syria.

British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon claimed that Russia had been carrying out "indiscriminate bombing of areas that are nothing to do with ISIL at all."

He claimed that the Russian intervention in Syria would change nothing and that his government would continue to make the case for support for military actions in northeast Syria where the Islamic State group is headquartered.