美国承认为击败伊斯兰国正艰苦努力

The United States says it is stepping up airstrikes against Islamic State targets in Syria and Iraq, as top U.S. military leaders acknowledged to lawmakers Tuesday that the U.S is struggling to combat the insurgent group.

"No one is satisfied with our progress to date," Marine General Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a hearing on the American military strategy in the Middle East.

Defense Secretary Ash Carter told the Senate Armed Services Committee he was "disappointed" in the failure of a $500 million U.S. effort to train moderate rebel forces in Syria to fight against the Islamic State. The United States abandoned the program earlier this month after only a few soldiers had been trained.

In response, Carter said the United States has intensified its aerial campaign against the Islamic State in hopes of shrinking its hold on Raqqa in northern Syria, the headquarters of its operations.

美军参谋长联席会议主席、海军陆战队上将邓福德在一次有关中东地区美国军事战略的听证会上说：“目前为止我们的进步不令人满意。”

美国防长卡特在参议院军事委员会的这次听证会上说，他对美国耗资5亿美元训练叙利亚温和派反对武装打击伊斯兰国的努力感到“失望”。美国本月初放弃了这一行动，之前只有少数士兵受训。

卡特表示，作为回应，美国加强了对伊斯兰国目标的空中打击，以期削弱其在叙利亚北部城市拉卡的控制。拉卡是伊斯兰国的行动总部。