WASHINGTON
U.S. President Barack Obama met Tuesday with Arab leaders who participated in airstrikes in Syria Monday night, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meetings in New York.
Just one day after the strikes on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant targets in Syria, President Obama met jointly with the leaders of Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, and thanked them for their participation in helping to roll back the insurgent group that has rocked Iraq and Syria.
Obama said that more than 50-nation coalition against ISIL sends the message that the world is united to degrade and destroy ISIL.
"This is not going to be something that is quick, and it is not something that is going to be easy," Obama said.
The president noted that the coalition is committed to the sovereignty of Iraq so that it can maintain its security and territorial integrity.
With regards to Syria, Obama said that the coalition is "committed to a Syria that is at peace and is not having the sort of spillover effects that are burdening its neighbors," he said.
Obama also noted that the sectarian strife that has been prevalent in the region in recent years needs to stop.
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