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State Department defends naming ‘bringing peace’ to Syria as 2015 win

by Jordain Carney - 12/28/15 4:11 PM ET

The State Department is defending naming “bringing peace” to Syria as one of its 2015 accomplishments.

The claim was made in a Dec. 24 blog post written by John Kirby, the assistant secretary of State for the bureau of public affairs.

{mosads}Deputy spokesman Mark Toner on Monday called it a “truthful claim.”

“Now look, the operative word there is bringing, not brought, so we’re bringing peace and security to Syria,” he told reporters, adding that it’s a “mistaken impression” to think that Kirby is implying that the country’s multi-pronged conflict has been resolved.

Kirby, in the blog post, noted that while the Syrian conflict “has continued to unfold in tragic ways,” the United States has given humanitarian aid and pushed for a political transition.

Toner doubled down on that Monday, saying that the United States has helped unify the Syrian opposition, as well as the international community, around a roadmap for a political transition from the Assad regime.

“We’re not there yet, we recognize that, but we do believe through a lot of hard, diplomatic spade work we have made progress,” he added.

The administration has been repeatedly questioned by both Republicans and Democrats over its Syria policy amid a growing humanitarian crisis and an escalation of the war against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

Kirby also included the Iran nuclear deal, reestablishing relations with Cuba and the White House’s summit on countering violent extremist in his roundup.

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