In an interview Monday morning, Secretary of State John Kerry sought to assuage Americans' concerns about the Islamic State group (ISIS), saying he knows of no "specific threat" to the U.S. and is confident the jihadists will be defeated.
"ISIS is not 10 feet tall," Kerry said on NBC's "Today" show. "There is a very clear focus by everybody, there is a united front and I am absolutely convinced that Daesh will be defeated and there will be increased steps in order to do so," Kerry added, using an Arabic term for ISIS.
"People need to not panic. There is a strategy in place that is growing by the day."
Kerry also pushed back against charges that ISIS has been able to expand its reach due to a suboptimal U.S. strategy. He noted that the international coalition fighting the extremist group in Syria and Iraq has only been engaged for about a year and has already captured one-quarter of ISIS' territory, according to CNN.
"I don't think anybody believes it's happening fast enough," Kerry told NBC during his visit to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, reported The Hill.
"We are escalating our steps," Kerry said. "We have been attacking them in Syria and Iraq and I am convinced that will increase in the coming days."
Kerry's remarks come soon before the first batch of U.S. special forces troops are scheduled to arrive in Syria, as promised by President Obama, after he repeatedly pledged to not commit ground troops. The troops will work behind the scenes for an undetermined amount of time, helping to organize local rebels fighting against ISIS, according to the Guardian. Kerry also said the administration is taking "additional steps" that he cannot divulge in public.
The American public is, for now, likely to remain skeptical about Kerry's reassurances. A majority of voters now say terrorism is the most important issue facing the country, supplanting the economy, which came in second with 21 percent, according to a Fox News poll released Sunday. Further, 66 percent of Americans do not believe President Obama has a good idea of how to deal with ISIS, and 83 percent think a terrorist attack is likely to happen in the U.S. in the near future.
