Kerry: Iran Can Help Defeat ISIS

Officials: Obama 'Open' to Meeting with Iranian President in New York

Secretary of State John Kerry continues to very publicly change his mind on his position vis-a-vis Iran in the war against ISIS, insisting today that Iran has a “role” to play in the destruction of ISIS.

Over the past two weeks, Kerry has several times ruled out including Iran in the anti-ISIS coalition, insisting it would be “inappropriate” to invite them to have any role in the conflict.

Iran, of course, was already in the conflict before the US war began, providing troops to Iraq to help fight off ISIS as far back June, and coordinating anti-ISIS operations with Syria long before that.

Now that the US has moved into the operation, they’ve decided to pick and choose who gets to be involved in the war, and most of the time, with an eye toward keeping the Saudis placated, that doesn’t include Iran.

At the same time, White House officials say that President Obama is “open” to meeting his Iranian counterpart in New York next week during the UN General Assembly, though no such meeting is presently scheduled.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.