“Under these rules of engagement, I can’t believe they got one person,” Graham said, calling the small number of recruits “pathetic.”
On Tuesday, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter revealed that the US program to train-and-equip moderate Syrian rebels to combat the Islamic State had produced only 60 opposition fighters.
Carter explained that the small number of recruits was the result of stringent US standards, including intelligence screening, and ensuring the fighters would be effective against the Islamic State and not a threat to the US forces in the region.
Graham entered the US presidential race in May 2015 with a heavy focus on the US foreign policy and defense priorities. He is one of 15 presidential hopefuls seeking the Republican presidential nomination.
