The White House is considering further disrupting an already fragile collection of alliances on the ground fighting the Islamic State group by directly arming the Syrian Kurds, according to a report, a move that could provide President Barack Obama with the fighting force he needs to secure at least the beginning of a victory in the extremist network's safe haven in Raqqa before the end of his presidency.

The New York Times reported Wednesday that Obama has tasked aides and military chiefs to weigh the effect of providing weapons for the first time to the Kurdish fighters, the group that Turkey, America's key NATO ally in this conflict, considers its main opponent across its southern border. The weapons would be limited to small arms, ammunition and other supplies, and would not include anti-tank or anti-aircraft weapons, the Times reports.

The composition of the local forces on the ground backed by roughly 300 U.S. special operators remains a sticking point for the Pentagon. It now refers to them by the umbrella group the "Syrian Democratic Forces" – to include Sunnis and other militia – as well as other terms that reflect previous U.S. attempts to train and advise local fighters, such as "Moderate Syrian Opposition" or "Vetted Syrian Opposition," to avoid upsetting local allies by referencing its reliance on the Kurds.

Turkey has been sluggish to involve itself in the U.S.-led conflict against the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS or ISIL, over fears that its strategy to empower allied ground troops will only further embolden Kurdish forces and allow them to seek an autonomous breakaway region. The campaign so far has been marked by a series of gaffes in which Turkey has criticized the YPG, the Kurdish fighting unit the U.S. relies on, as no different than organizations like the PKK, which both Turkey and the U.S. consider a terrorist group.

Turkey has at times been amenable, such as when it allowed Iraqi Kurds to travel through Turkey in 2014 to join their Syrian counterparts in liberating the key border town of Kobani. But it's actions have also threatened U.S. interests, such as when it deployed tanks across the border into Syria in August to help liberate another border town, Jarabulus, and simultaneously prevented Kurdish forces from connecting two pockets near Turkey into one contiguous band at the border.

That incident forced Vice President Joe Biden to visit Turkey and call for Kurdish forces to halt their advances as a sign of goodwill to the NATO ally.

Tensions in Syria have reached new highs in recent days, as a proposed ceasefire agreement collapsed following supposedly errant and high-profile airstrikes by both the U.S. and either Russia or Syria, though both of the latter deny any responsibility.

Secretary of State John Kerry called Wednesday for all aircraft in northern Syria to be grounded to allow for aid to reach the tens of thousands of civilians trapped in embattled places like the city of Aleppo.

Rumors have circulated that the U.S.-led coalition is planning major offensives in Syria as well as Iraq as early as October. Officials have publicly refused to comment on specifics.