WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States was only training about 60 Syrian opposition fighters to battle Islamic State as of July 3, far below expectations, Defence Secretary Ash Carter told Congress on Tuesday, citing rigorous U.S. vetting of recruits.
The programme, which launched in May in Jordan and Turkey, was designed to train as many as 5,400 fighters a year and seen as a test of President Barack Obama's strategy of engaging local partners to combat extremists.
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