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The program to train moderate Syrian rebels could involve as many as 1,000 American trainers and support personnel, the Pentagon said Friday, The Daily Star reported.

If all goes well, trained rebels could be back on the battlefield in Syria by the end of the year. Rear Adm. John Kirby said the U.S. would send several hundred trainers and probably an equal number of support troops, including security teams, to the training sites, which will be in Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The total number of U.S. forces hasn’t been finalized but it could “approach or exceed 1,000,” he said. There also could be hundreds of trainers from other countries, Kirby said, including troops from nations where the sites are located as well as others.

Plans for the U.S. and others to train Syria’s moderate opposition have dragged on for months as officials have struggled to work out details of the program and put together a vetting process to identify appropriate rebel groups and individuals who could receive the training.

Officials have said that the training could begin as early as March, depending on progress in setting up the sites and selecting Syrian troops to train. And it will take several months to go through the training program, which will be conducted by special operations forces as well as conventional troops.

Kirby said the vetting program would be significant and have multiple layers, as part of the effort to insure trainers are dealing with units and individuals that are trustworthy.