US Offensive Against IS May Take Three Years, Say Experts

President Obama has come up with a three-pronged strategy to deal with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, which might take almost three years to see full effect, say officials.

President Barack Obama is schedule to broadcast a nationwide speech Wednesday, where he will rally support for strong American action against the Islamic State. But it has been made clear that the United States will desist from engaging the country in any war.

In an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press"  broadcast Sunday, he said, "I want people to understand  that over the course of months, we are going to be able to not just blunt the momentum" of the militants. "We are going to systematically degrade their capabilities; we're going to shrink the territory that they control; and, ultimately, we're going to defeat them," reports  The New York Times.

The campaign involves a slew of airstrikes against the Islamic state strongholds, similar to what is happening now. In the last month, the United States has undertaken 149 strikes in the region to stave off the jihadists from establishing control over key places.

The next phase would be to see that a strong Iraqi government is established and help train the Kurds and military personnel of the country and supply equipments and advice.

The third phase will envisage going into the IS strongholds in Syria and striking at their bases. Pentagon officials are of the opinion that this will take time and even run into the next administration, beyond President Obama's tenure.

Antony J. Blinken, President Obama's deputy national security adviser, said to CNN, "It's going to take time, and it will probably go beyond even this administration to get to the point of defeat."

The President, at the conclusion of the recently held NATO summit, had outlined the plan and rallied support against the IS. He clarified that allies both in Europe and the Middle East will have to be formed for the plan to work.   There are clear indications that Turkey, Jordan, Iraq and Saudi Arabia have been tapped to join in both the diplomatic and military efforts.

It is yet to be seen what role the Middle East countries agree to take.

 "We are going to have to find effective partners on the ground to push back against ISIL," said Obama using the U.S. government's acronym for the Islamic State​, reports McClatchyDC. "The moderate coalition there is one that we can work with. We have experience working with many of them. They have been, to some degree, outgunned and outmanned, and that's why it's important for us to work with our friends and allies to support them more effectively."