President Obama convened a summit with representatives from more than 100 countries in New York on Sept. 29 to emphasize the formation of a “global movement that is united by the mission of degrading and ultimately destroying ISIL,” he said in remarks at United Nations Headquarters during the annual General Assembly. The summit comes just after the one-year anniversary of the “global coalition to counter ISIL,” and though the group marked successes in stabilizing and liberating portions of Iraq and Syria from terrorists, Obama conceded there is a great deal more effort needed. “This is not a conventional battle. This is a long-term campaign—not only against this particular network, but against its ideology,” he said. Obama praised the growth of the international coalition to some 60 nations, and the military contributions from nearly two dozen countries. A new leader and an inclusive government that “unites the Syrian people in the fight against terrorist groups” is crucial to ending the conflict, Obama added. In a nod to the recent increase in Russian activity in Syria, he declared the US is also “prepared to work with all countries, including Russia and Iran, to find a political mechanism in ?which it is possible to begin a transition process.” (White House fact sheet on summit).
It is critical that the Air Force move forward on the replacement for its E-4B “Doomsday” aircraft to keep the capability “viable” into the next decade and beyond, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. told lawmakers May 8.