To restate, none of this is to argue that the costs of the Syrian civil war have been worth it, or that the United States should seek to prolong the conflict. Humanitarian concerns alone compel the United States to actively work to end the fighting. Moreover, the growth of sectarianism in the region is a potentially explosive force that the U.S. cannot control. Finally, the potential for the fighting and unrest to spread to strategically vital countries in the region also gives the U.S. a strong strategic interest in ending the Syrian civil war. Still, to date the U.S. has been winning in Syria, as it has been the primary benefactor of the events that have transpired there.

Zachary Keck is Associate Editor of The Diplomat where he authors The Pacific Realist blog. You can find him on Twitter: @ZacharyKeck.

Image: Wikimedia Commons/Bo yaser. CC BY-SA 3.0.