James Jeffrey

Russia presses for a premature withdrawal of U.S. and coalition forces. Such an untimely U.S. military departure would enable ISIS to return, allow Iran to fill the vacuum, place Iraq's stability at risk, and increase the threats to…

what kind of message does that send and why would anybody want to be our allies in the future?

I think Russia's support for the Assad regime is a mistake.

We are the leaders, the beacon on the hill, you know, the shining light.

Israel is a major player in the Middle East. Its own security and its work with other countries, for example, to defeat ISIS, and to push back on Iran, is absolutely vital for our overall strategy for the region.

Everybody wants this war to end. Everybody wants refugees and IDPs to return, and everybody wants the fighting and this danger of an escalation to stop.

We do not turn to Russia to broker an agreement. We turn to the U.N. to do it.

A political solution is highly unlikely with a government acting the way the current Assad government acts.

I took this job on the assumption that this Administration would stand by its commitments and would hold the line on Syria. So far, I believe it has absolutely done so.

I think the Syrian people, when they marched in 2011, wanted the same thing, and they still want the same thing.

We would much prefer to pursue the positive agenda of deescalation and political reinvigoration I just described, but we are prepared to maintain our policy of pressure...

It is a good example of how we can succeed by, with, and through the international community and local partners, and it is a good model for the future.