Riyadh: Saudi forces participating in any US-led ground operation in Syria would focus on fighting Daesh and not the Damascus regime, the kingdom’s foreign minister said on Thursday.
On Syria, Al Jubeir said any Saudi force on the ground would make the battle against Daesh its priority, despite Riyadh’s fierce opposition to President Bashar Al Assad.
“Saudi Arabia has expressed its readiness to send special forces to Syria as part of the coalition, with the goal of eliminating Daesh. This is the mission and the responsibility,” he said.
“If they enter Syria, these forces will work in the framework of the international coalition to fight Daesh, there will be no unilateral operations,” he said in the interview at his ministry.
Asked if the mission could be expanded to include operations against Al Assad’s forces, Al Jubeir said: “This would be something the international coalition would have to make a decision on.”
Saudi Arabia has backed rebel forces fighting Al Assad in the country’s nearly five-year civil war and insists he must leave office for the conflict to be resolved.
Al Assad said last week that his eventual goal is to retake all of Syria.
Al Jubeir responded that Al Assad “said many things since the start of the crisis in Syria. A lot of what he said is unrealistic”.
The UN has begun delivering aid to besieged Syrian cities under an international deal struck last week that also hoped for a ceasefire within seven days.
“It’s a very delicate situation and we’re watching it day by day. We will find out if Bashar Al Assad and his allies are serious about a political process or not,” Al Jubeir said.

Source: Gulf News February 19, 2016