German Government Rules Out Sending Ground Troops to Syria

(Bloomberg) -- Germany’s government ruled out dispatching ground troops to Syria to assist a U.S.-led campaign against the Islamic State, pushing back on a request from the U.S. administration.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s chief spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said Germany’s contribution to the anti-ISIS mission will most likely be confined to existing measures, such as aerial surveillance and assistance to Iraqi Kurds.

“When I say that the government intends to maintain its current measures in the context of the anti-ISIS coalition, then that certainly includes no ground troops,’’ Seibert told reporters in Berlin.

James Jeffrey, the U.S. special representative for engagement in Syria, made public a request for German soldiers to be dispatched not necessarily to engage in combat but to help with logistics, traning and support.

German participation in military missions are subject to parliamentary mandates. The mandate for the current anti-ISIS mission runs out on Oct. 31 and may be extended by the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag.

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.