美军将增兵伊拉克1500人

President Barack Obama authorized the deployment of up to 1,500 additional troops to Iraq and is asking Congress for $5.6 billion, as the U.S. looks to ramp up the fight against Islamic State militants.

Obama Authorizes Up to 1,500 More Troops to Deploy to Iraq

President Asks Congress for $5.6 Billion to Fight Islamic State Militants

President Barack Obama spoke to the media before meeting with his cabinet members at the White House on Friday. Associated Press

By

Jeffrey Sparshott And

Michael R. Crittenden

Updated Nov. 7, 2014 4:08 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama has authorized the deployment of up to 1,500 additional troops to Iraq in noncombat roles and is asking Congress for $5.6 billion, as the U.S. looks to ramp up the fight against Islamic State militants.

The U.S. military personnel will serve “in a noncombat role to train, advise and assist Iraqi security forces, including Kurdish forces,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.

The U.S. has led a three-month bombing campaign against Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, with mixed results so far. The Sunni militant group still controls vast stretches of territory across Iraq and Syria and threatens to expand its reach.

The infusion of new troops is part of a U.S. effort to train often-overmatched Iraqi personnel. “Ultimately, these Iraqi forces, when fully trained, will enable Iraq to better defend its citizens, its borders and its interests against the threat of ISIL. This effort is in keeping with our overarching strategy to work with partners on the ground to destroy ISIL,” Rear Adm. John Kirby, the Pentagon spokesman, said.

U.S. Central Command plans to establish operations centers outside of Baghdad and Erbil, eventually expanding to “several sites across Iraq that will accommodate the training of 12 Iraqi brigades,” Adm. Kirby said. The sites will be located in northern, western and southern Iraq. The Pentagon said the U.S. will finalize the sites in the coming weeks.

While U.S. troops won’t be in combat, they will be better positioned to support Iraqi security forces, the White House’s Mr. Earnest said.

In addition to the fresh infusion of troops, Mr. Obama is asking Congress for $5.6 billion for operations against Islamic State. The request includes $1.6 billion to train and equip Iraqi forces.

White House Budget Director Shaun Donovan said the funding request is “an opportunity for Congress and this administration to work together to provide the additional resources needed to degrade and ultimately defeat ISIL.”

The initial reaction to news of the request was mixed on Capitol Hill.

Sen. John Thune (R., S.D.) said the funding request was one of the topics covered on Friday afternoon at a meeting between Mr. Obama and top congressional leaders. He said the administration provided details on the fight against Islamic State militants and covered the funding request announced on Friday.

Mr. Thune said it is important for the administration to provide lawmakers with additional details, but suggested lawmakers should be able to address the funding request during the lame-duck session of Congress. “I think for the most part it’s an area where people want to be helpful and want to be supportive,” Mr. Thune said.

Rep. Buck McKeon (R., Calif.), who chairs the House Armed Services Committee, said he welcomed the acknowledgment from the White House that additional funds may be needed to combat militants in Iraq and Syria. But he also said Mr. Obama should provide lawmakers a better sense of the overall strategy being pursued.

“I remain concerned that the president’s strategy to defeat ISIL is insufficient. I would urge the president to reconsider his strategy and clearly explain how additional funding supports a new direction,” Mr. McKeon said. Additional clarity on the administration’s plans “is more likely to find swift congressional approval.”

—Felicia Schwartz contributed to this article.