Trump’s Syria pullout comment carries little weight
SDF says it has not been informed of any plan to withdraw US forces operating in Syria
ANALYSIS
President Donald Trump made a surprise announcement during an infrastructure speech on Thursday in Ohio, saying the United States would soon withdraw from Syria. “By the way, we’re knocking the hell out of Daesh,” Trump said.
“We’re coming out of Syria, like, very soon. Let the other people take care of it now. Very soon — very soon we’re coming out.” There is a couple of things about this. The first is that one shouldn’t take it to the bank. Trump has a tendency to spitball about very serious matters such as this.
The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said yesterday it had not been informed of any plan to withdraw US forces operating in Syria.
President Donald Trump had indicated on Thursday the US would be withdrawing forces from Syria “very soon”.
The SDF, which is spearheaded by the Kurdish YPG militia, has been the main partner for the US-led coalition in Syria, where some 2,000 US forces are operating in the fight against Daesh.
“Our work and coordination (with the coalition) is continuing in the framework of the support programme and joint operations in all regions,” SDF spokesman Kino Gabriel told Reuters in a written message.
But Trump’s proclamation was also notable for one other reason: He telegraphed military strategy.
That is something Trump said repeatedly on the 2016 campaign trail and since that he wouldn’t do as president. He said it would only tip off the enemy.
“Unlike Hillary Clinton, who has risked so many lives with her careless handling of sensitive information, my administration will not telegraph exact military plans to the enemy,” Trump said in his big speech about fighting terrorism in August 2016.
Trump does seem to have less concern about telegraphing troop withdrawals, calling for getting out of Iraq and Afghanistan repeatedly on the campaign trail. But now that he’s president, he’s actually in a position to make such withdrawals happen rather quickly.