Emirati State Minister for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash. PHOTO: Reuters
Asked if the UAE was ready to send troops if need be, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said at a media briefing in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi: "This has been our position throughout."
US defense chief welcomes Saudi offer on troops in Syria
"We have been frustrated at the slow pace .... of confronting Daesh," he added, referring to Islamic State by its Arabic acronym.
"We are not talking about thousands of troops but we are talking about troops on the ground that will lead the way ... that will support ... and I think our position remains the same and we will have to see how this progresses," he said.
Gargash added "US leadership on this" would be a prerequisite for the UAE.
Russia must stop bombing women, children in Syria: Kerry
Saudi Arabia said last week it was ready to participate in any ground operations in Syria if the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq decided to start such operations.
Syria would resist any ground incursion into its territory and send the aggressors home "in coffins", its foreign minister said on Saturday, in comments clearly aimed at Sunni Arab countries that have said they were ready to join such an operation.
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