U.S. troops to train Syrian opposition could number 1,000: Pentagon

U.S. Department of Defense said on Friday the program to train forces of moderate Syrian opposition could involve as many as 1,000 U.S. trainers and support personnel.

The initial number of U.S. trainers will be 400, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters in a press briefing, adding that the total number "could approach 1,000." "It might even exceed that. I can't rule that out."

Some deployment orders could come as early as next week, and troops could begin to deploy within the next four to six weeks, he said.

The troops, which would range from special operations to conventional, will be spread out to at least three different training sites, in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, Kirby said.

However, it was too early to pinpoint the number, or where the U.S. troops would be coming from, he said.

As a key part of U.S. military strategy to defeat and degrade the Islamic State, the Pentagon proposed the 500-million-U.S.- dollar training plan in June last year. U.S. Congress first approved it in September for three months, and in December, extended the program through 2016.

Kirby said no recruiting has begun yet, and that the training would not start before March.

The training is expected to take several months and the Syrian opposition soldiers would be ready by the end of the year to enter the fight in Syria against the Islamic State extremist group, he said.

The opposition forces are to be trained for three goals, Kirby said: to defend their own citizens and communities inside Syria against extremist groups like the Islamic State, to eventually go on the offensive against IS forces, and eventually to work with political opposition leaders toward a political solution to the Syrian civil war. Endite