Obama says military strikes will continue to degrade the IS group, but such actions alone cannot solve Syria’s long-term problems
Mr Obama said Syria was one of many issues that are “transnational in nature… and require a transnational response”.
He said: “It would be, I think, tempting, for a lot of people, to believe that we can pull up the drawbridge and that we can carve a moat around ourselves and not have to deal with problems around the world.”
But without co-operation and alliances “we are far weaker and we won’t solve these problems”, he said.
On so-called Islamic State he said: “Prosecuting the campaign is critical, and although I don’t anticipate that in the next nine months it will be finished, because, unfortunately, even a small pocket of extremists, if they’re prepared to die themselves, can still wreak havoc on many of our cities.
“But I do think that we can slowly shrink the environment in which they operate and take on strongholds like Mosul and Raqqa that are the beating heart of their movement.”
At least 250,000 people have died in five years of conflict in Syria and millions have fled the fighting.
Aftermath of air strike in rebel-held neighborhood of Tareeq al-Bab in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo.
Mr Obama and the UN fear a fragile truce between the government forces and non-jihadist rebels, in place since February, is in danger of collapse amid renewed clashes.
Current talks in Geneva between the Syrian government and opposition delegations will continue into next week, but there have been bitter exchanges.
The Syrian opposition delegation, known as the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), and rebel forces inside Syria have accused the government of repeatedly violating the terms of the truce brokered by the US and Russia.
The HNC said the Syrian government was “not a serious partner” while the government hit back by accusing the HNC of “sulking”.
Any peace process would require a transitional government, but the role of Mr Assad is a key sticking point.
