US Gen. John Allen has announced that he intends to travel to East Asia to look for more potential members for the US-led anti-IS (Islamic State) coalition, which has been launching air strikes against the extremists in Iraq and Syria, RIA Novosti reported referring to Jordanian Petra News Agency.
Gen. Allen did not specify which countries he intends to go to.
Allen also told Petra that in the coming weeks, the anti-IS coalition plans to provide support to the Iraqi forces, which will launch a ground campaign against IS militants in the near future.
Members of the international coalition are currently providing training to Iraqi soldiers.
Meanwhile the Kurdish militia in Iraq, known as the Peshmerga, has been fighting IS militants on the ground on a regular basis. Their efforts have been backed by air strikes carried by the anti-IS coalition, which was established by US President Barack Obama in September, 2014.
Obama has promised that the coalition would arm Kurds, Iraqis and Syria's "moderate" opposition so that they can fight IS militants on the ground.
IS, a radical group, has been fighting the Syrian government since 2012. The extremists later expanded their operations to Iraq, ceasing vast areas in both countries and declaring the establishment of an Islamic caliphate over the territories under their control.
The United States started carrying out air strikes against IS targets in Iraq in August. Following the establishment of the international coalition, which currently has 62 participating states, the strikes were expanded to Syria.