Should Western countries ally with Syrian president Assad to fight ISIS?

There is widespread agreement--from Washington to Damascus, and London to Tehran--for the desire to eliminate the Islamic militant Group ISIS. But how to do that, and whom to cooperate with are paramount. While some analysts urge cooperation -- others point out that while sometimes the enemy of your enemy is your friend...that's just sometimes.

• One cartoon that captures the horrible truth about Assad and ISIS -- VOX

One of the first things you learn in the Middle East is that my enemy's enemy is not necessarily my friend. And we may very well find that we're aligned against a common enemy. But that doesn't make us friends with someone, it doesn't make us able to trust them, it doesn't make us able to work with them. And it would poison what we are trying to achieve if we were to align ourselves with president Assad.Philip Hammond, Britain's Foreign Secretary

Britain's foreign secretary Philip Hammond explained to the BBC that it's important to struggle against the threat of the Islamic extremist group ISIS -- but not at the expense of making an ally of Syria.

Since ISIS is firmly entrenched in Syria, it's going to be difficult to confront the militants without the consent of Damascus. Syria's offered to assist an international effort, but warns any air strikes without its consent would be considered a violation of its sovereignty.

To discuss the implications of a western alliance with Syria, we were joined by:

• Max Abrahms, professor of Public Policy at Northeastern University.
• Rachel Bronson, a senior fellow for global energy at The Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

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This segment was produced by The Current's Sarah Grant and Kristin Nelson.