On December 19th, US President Donald Trump announced the US withdrawal from Syria and that the fight against ISIS has concluded in victory.
A video of him saying that “We have won against ISIS. Our boys, our young women, our men – they’re all coming back, and they’re coming back now,” Trump said in a video posted on Twitter.
After historic victories against ISIS, it’s time to bring our great young people home! pic.twitter.com/xoNjFzQFTp
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 19, 2018
“We won, and that’s the way we want it, and that’s the way they want it,” he said
He further posted another tweet, claiming that the only reason US troops were in Syria during his Presidency to begin with was to defeat ISIS.
We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 19, 2018
However, according to the New York Times, Trump did in fact order a complete withdrawal, and he did so against resistance from the Pentagon and US Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis.
The White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders also confirmed this shift in policy in a statement, shared by Zeke Miller, a White House reporter for AP.
.@PressSec statement on Syria pic.twitter.com/Z7s6CVxd0N
— Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) December 19, 2018
Gen. Joseph Votel, the commander of United States Central Command, and Brett H. McGurk, the American envoy to the coalition fighting the Islamic State, fiercely protested the military withdrawal, unnamed administration officials said cited by the NYT.
Officials said General Votel argued that withdrawing American troops would leave the Kurds vulnerable to attack from Turkey, which has warned it will soon launch an offensive against them. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) received news of the withdrawal and its leadership was “shocked” and considered the withdrawal as a “stab in the back.”
In the first official responses of the Kurdish Forces, Aldar Khalil, co-president of the executive body of the Movement for a Democratic Society (TEV-DEM), said that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) never pinned their hopes on foreign forces.
“We never said that we will protect ourselves with foreign forces or that we will achieve our revolution with the support of foreign forces, we rely on our own power,” Khalil said.
Earlier, McGurk characterized the mission in Syria as one that sought the “enduring defeat” of the Islamic State. “We know that once the physical space is defeated, we can’t just pick up and leave,” he told reporters. “We want to stay on the ground and make sure that stability can be maintained in these areas.”
Pentagon spokesperson Dana White also contradicted Trump:
And now from Pentagon's Dana White:
"The Coalition has liberated the ISIS-held territory, but the campaign against ISIS is not over.
"We have started the process of returning U.S. troops home from Syria as we transition to the next phase of the campaign."
— Spencer Ackerman (@attackerman) December 19, 2018
Furthermore, the Daily Beast reported that despite Trump’s announcement, the Pentagon maintained that nothing has changed. “At this time, we continue to work by, with and through our partners in the region,” said Col. Rob Manning. The U.S. has about 2,000 troops in Syria, mostly working to train local forces in combating ISIS. A U.S. withdrawal risks diminishing American influence in the region, satisfying the goals of Syria, Iran, and Russia.
Senator Lindsey Graham also spoke out against Trump’s decision. “This is chaos,” he told reporters.
Lindsey Graham on #Syria withdrawal situation just now in Senate subway: ‘This is chaos’
— Travis J. Tritten (@Travis_Tritten) December 19, 2018
Withdrawal of this small American force in Syria would be a huge Obama-like mistake. https://t.co/028NOsbyzT
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 19, 2018
Another Republican Senator Marco Rubio, also spoke against the decision:
Marco Rubio railed on the president’s decision to pull out of Syria, saying whoever advised him has done a “great disservice” to the country. He said to us that Trump has put the US at risk by his decision – and it will make the world view America as an unreliable partner.
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) December 19, 2018
In a letter to Trump, Graham and five other senators, from both parties, implored him to reconsider his decision, warning that a withdrawal would embolden the remnants of the Islamic State, as well as the Assad government, Iran and Russia.
Letter from @SenatorShaheen @marcorubio @SenTomCotton @SenAngusKing @SenJoniErnst and me to President Trump on withdrawal from Syria. pic.twitter.com/G035schXJu
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 20, 2018
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu only commented with “of course, an American decision,” and that the Israeli government would study the possibly implications that would bring.
But according to analysts, cited by the NYT, the withdrawal would be a serious blow to Israel’s efforts to impede Iranian influence in Syria and the region.
A statement released by the British government said that while the global coalition against the Islamic State had made progress, “we must not lose sight of the threat they pose.”
Tobias Ellwood, a junior UK Defense minister commented on Trump’s decision: “I strongly disagree. It has morphed into other forms of extremism and the threat is very much alive.”
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova was cited as saying that the decision was “a milestone story which might evolve from this decision is a real prospect for a political solution.”
According to NYT, an unnamed senior White House official told reporters in a phone call that previous statements by White House National Security Adviser John Bolton and other senior officials all claiming that the US would remain in Syria, not only until ISIS is defeated, but until Iran withdraws as well. However, that didn’t matter “Trump could do as he pleases.”
“He gets to do that,” said the unnamed official “That’s his prerogative.”
According to an unnamed official from the Pentagon:
“Trump wanted to divert attention from his mounting legal troubles: the Russia investigation; the sentencing of his former personal lawyer, Michael D. Cohen, in a hush money scandal to buy the silence of two women who said they had affairs with him; and his former national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn, who was harshly criticized by a federal judge for lying to investigators.”
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Of course they oppose any semblance of peace even a reduction in daily killings of civilians .. see US genocide.of Yemeni children on school buses. The warmongers fear it will spread to other illegal aggressive wars. There is no MICC slop in peace.
I guess in a few days we’ll find out who’s the real boss, who ultimately calls the shots, AGAIN. …and he makes a U-turn, in 3… 2…
I don’t believe it for a second. No way he does what he says, no way at all.
They said a lot of nonsense recently, they can say statements like this with a straight face:
A US withdrawal from Syria risks satisfying the goals of Syria
I am as skeptical as you are, Garga, but the benefit of having an unhinged U.S. president is that occasionally he or she will act in defiance of the deep state. That usually means acting in the interests of the people. Just a coincidence of course, but I’ll take whatever crumbs fall off the table.
Keep in mind that the most vocal proponents of the U.S. Forever War are neocons and other Washington parasites generally opposed to Trump. They’re really pissing him off lately. Now, they’re going after his son. Add to that Sec. Def. Mattis and the Pentagon, who have no – zero – accomplishments to offer Trump besides holding back the imaginary Iranian invasion, and it’s not surprising that he decided to tell them, “You’re FIRED”
The other reason I doubt he’ll reverse his decision is that he already told Bibi about it. I would have loved to hear that conversation. I can’t read Israel’s reaction, but it seems oddly muted. I would have expected weeks of Nettanyahu shrieking about the now unchecked, impending Iranian invasion (the imaginary one – through Syria).
yesterday, all I posted here was 100% correct, including the pentagon quotes i published!!i was spot on.
this aint over by a long shot.The jews are going beserk.Impeachment process is on the way…and if that takes to long…again as i wrote yesterday, trump better have a personal relationship with several secret service men.JFK 2.0 is on the way!!
The US is a pathetic, sick Country and it needs to fall.
Why would WARMONGERS, PROFITING from WAR, want to end wars???
Of course they would not.
Pentagon and Senators have no compassion and like evil morons want to fight with every single country in the world.
Give it some few more days, and also for the kurds, whom have expanded way out of what was recongised as their territory, aka the entire eastern part, to have what, an bargian chip, this was never yours in the first place, and I guess they will redraw the coming days. And U really hope that, when all this mafias, aka PKK etc, are running, that the people now realises they indeed have an opertunity to do something positiv for the entire people and now some few clans, on top of is armed by the UssA etc, because you can, the war is in all essense, finished, moping up some scraps will be of course ongoing for an while, but the rest, is going back to normal, dont f…. this up, Kurds, its an offer you can let go, for the sake of the people.
ISIS, whatever, is dying, and will of course be an problem for an while untill the amo runs out, and to be frank, as far I could judge, UssA abd the Saudi-barbarians is the main reason they are still alive, and now we see why, intresting how, uh, negative the western perstitutes and whorespondents take is on this, even BBC is going total neo-CON. Tsk, tsk, tsk.
So, hehe, then we have Erdogan, yeah, somewhere between wanting to flog the mofo or create an statue of Him, never the less, danced like an balerina, but I am pleased to see that the Turks take their region more sincere and is ramping up the cooperations, so, after all this years, when the plug goes, we all are sceptic, I am, but this was the only second option left, an conflic with the region, or go home. In an sense Trump is corect, the job is done, and dont forget, this is the work of Obamalama the Lord of Piss and Drones, He just ends it, another meaningless and coslty war, where as an peacefull future is much more profitable, do the math, then we have the so called ISIS witch will be an problem, the rats that have come to europa is the same rats the euopeans hailed as heroes for years when they flocked down there to fight Dicks, as Gaddafy to Assad. They have been recruted and shiped for years, incl African mercs, to ex-nato dogs of war.
They know who this scums are, why do you think the Danish and the Norwegian Gov is protecting people acosuated with ISIS/Al-CIAeda, from justice, since they admitted terror acts comitted in Iran, how nice of them, yeah, probably because terrorists are poor desperate minoritys, right, norDicks.
Why do you think the French police new abouyt this scumbag, huh, kn the first place, they are foot soldiers, and now their war is gone.
So all in all, an good day.
peace
How intellectual humans love human destruction and bloodshed? American senators well educated and matured people , why they dont like peace and prosperity for non_american human beings ?
Because they are greedy and stupid not well-rducated or mature at all. They don’t let you get elected if you are well-educated and mature.
It doesnt change what me and Bolton said. We are withdrawing our young people from Syria so they wont be in the risk zone when we go to a whole new level in the United States fight against terror.
The new level against terrorists in Syria will be our US Space Command Centre. From space me and Bolton will appoint people with experience in playstation games to pint point terrorists all over the world with space super nano laser precision techniques. The targets will be hit with 1cm accuracy…………LOL.
Further our nuclear Triad with new tactical mininukes are been prepared for a new unprecedented war on terror from inner space and deep sea without jeopardizing our own people………………..LOL.
Trump is the man! The Pentagon and Senate and house are controlled by Jewish Israelis. Trump us defying them all best he can without getting shot like they did to Kennedy when he wanted to end the war and force Israel lobbies to register as foreign lobbies. Little by little Trump is doing the opposite of what this country has been doing wrong for 105 years.
Pentagon disagree! ? Send them in Guantanamo bay.