The United States said Monday it is closely monitoring the progress of a new Syrian opposition alliance as it weighs whether to recognize the body as the sole representative of the Syrian people.

“We’re obviously looking at this day by day, week by week. We’re getting to know them better. We’re encouraging them to make more progress,” said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.

“But we will see how things go over the coming weeks.”

European Union foreign ministers on Monday said they viewed the just-formed National Coalition as “legitimate representatives” of Syria’s people.