The Associated Press reports that “sending thousands more American troops into Iraq or Syria in a bid to accelerate the defeat of the Islamic State group would push U.S. allies to the exits, create more anti-U.S. resistance and give up the U.S. military’s key advantages, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in an Associated Press interview.”

“Speaking from his Pentagon office overlooking the Potomac River on Wednesday, Carter said he favors looking for ways to speed up the counter-IS campaign, which administration critics including the president-elect, Donald Trump, have called slow-footed and overly cautious.”

“But he outlined numerous reasons why he believes strongly in the current approach of letting local Iraqi and Syrian forces set the pace.”