WASHINGTON: TheUS military has confirmed that the order to withdraw American troops from Syriahad been signed, after President Donald Trump held talks with his Turkishcounterpart to negotiate a pullout that has stunned Washignton's allies. Trump announced Wednesday that the roughly2,000 US troops would leave civil war-racked Syria, where they have beendeployed to assist in a multinational fight against the Islamic State (IS)jihadist group.
"The executeorder for Syria has been signed," a US military spokesperson told AFP onSunday in response to a query, without providing further details. Turkey was arare ally that lauded Trump's decision on Syria, a country where it will nowhave a freer rein to target Kurdish fighters who were armed and trained by theUS and played a major role in the war against IS but are deemed terrorists byAnkara.
'We've won'
Trump andPresident Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by telephone on Sunday and "agreed toensure coordination between their countries' military, diplomatic and otherofficials to avoid a power vacuum which could result following any abuse of thewithdrawal and transition phase in Syria," the Turkish presidency said in astatement. Trump tweeted that he and Erdogan "discussed (IS), our mutualinvolvement in Syria, & the slow & highly coordinated pullout of UStroops from the area."
White House aidescited by The Washington Post said Trump's advisors have persuaded him towithdraw the troops more slowly than he would like in order not to jeopardizetheir safety. A withdrawal could have extraordinary geopolitical implications,and it runs counter to long-established US policy for the region. Thousands ofIS jihadists are thought to remain in Syria, but Trump on Wednesday declaredthat "we've won against ISIS," using another acronym for theextremists. Late Sunday he tweeted that Erdogan had assured him that any ISfighters remaining will be eliminated. "President @RT_Erdogan of Turkeyhas very strongly informed me that he will eradicate whatever is left of ISISin Syria," Trump said in a Tweet.
An alreadydevastated region
Repeating apattern of admiring comments towards global strongmen, Trump added that Erdogan"is a man who can do it." The US president concluded: "Ourtroops are coming home!" US politicians-including those from his ownRepublican party-and international allies fear the withdrawal is premature andwould further destabilize the already devastated region. A US pullout, saidMutlu Civiroglu, a Kurdish affairs analyst, will open the way "for Turkeyto start its operations against the Kurds, and a bloody war will begin."French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday said he "deeply regretted"Trump's decision, and that "an ally must be reliable."
Israel has beencareful to point out that it respects the US decision, but analysts say thatbeneath those public pronouncements are concerns over whether its main enemyIran will have a freer hand. US troops will leave under the auspices of a newPentagon chief set to start next month, after Jim Mattis resigned from the postciting major differences, including on Syria, with the often-impulsive Trump.Several US politicians from both parties rejected Trump's claim that IS hadbeen defeated. The decision also caused alarm and dismay in the US militaryover the prospect of suddenly abandoning Washington's Kurdish partners.
Turmoil
Trump's suddendecision sparked turmoil within his administration, prompting the resignationof Brett McGurk, the special envoy to the anti-IS coalition, as well as Mattis.Plans for the troop pullout will now be overseen by Deputy Secretary of DefensePatrick Shanahan, who Trump on Sunday said would replace Mattis startingJanuary 1.
Mattis, 68, hadsaid he would leave at the end of February to allow a smooth transition for thenext chief of the US military-but a reportedly angry Trump accelerated hisdeparture by two months. "And now Trump gets rid of SecDef Mattis almostimmediately. No smooth transition. No effort at reassurance to allies. Justvindictive," Carl Bildt, a former Swedish prime minister and now co-chairof the European Council on Foreign Relations, said on Twitter. According to USmedia, Trump voiced resentment over news coverage of Mattis' stingingresignation letter that laid bare his fundamental disagreements with thepresident.
Days later,special envoy McGurk made a similar move, saying he could not support Trump'sSyria decision that "left our coalition partners confused and our fightingpartners bewildered." Unlike Mattis, Shanahan has never served in themilitary and has spent most of his career in the private sector, including withaircraft giant Boeing. Until Trump finds a permanent Pentagon chief, Shanahan willlead plans for US troops to leave Syria along with a significant drawdown inAfghanistan, both of which critics worry will leave war-torn regions at risk ofcontinued and potentially heightened bloodshed. - AFP