Mohammad: US should not leave Syria

SAUDI CROWN PRINCE SAYS IT WILL HELP STOP IRAN’S REGIONAL EXPANSION

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman has said he wants America to maintain a presence in Syria. This comes despite President Donald Trump’s declaration that US forces will be pulled from the country in the near future.

In an interview with Time magazine, the crown prince said: “We believe US troops should stay for at least the midterm, if not the longterm.”

Prince Mohammad branded the US presence in Syria the last effort at stopping Iran’s regional expansion.

He also said that through its regional proxies, Iran will be able to set up an overland supply route from Beirut through Syria and Iraq to Tehran, giving the regime a strong foothold in the region.

The US maintains a remote base at Deir Al Zor in eastern Syria that lies in the middle of the Iranian corridor. Washington coordinates its anti-Daesh operations from this base. “If you take those troops out from east Syria, you will lose that checkpoint,” Prince Mohammad said. “And this corridor could create a lot of things in the region.”

Prince Mohammad said Syrian President Bashar Al Assad is not likely to be ousted from power. He said he hopes that Al Assad will not become a “puppet” for Tehran. “Bashar is staying,” he said. “But I believe that Bashar’s interest is not to let the Iranians do whatever they want they want to do.”

The crown prince made his Syria remarks hours after Trump told a crowd in Ohio that US troops will soon be pulled out. “By the way, we’re knocking the hell out of [Daesh],” Trump said.

“We’re coming out of Syria very soon. Let the other people take care of it now, very soon. Very soon, we’re coming out.”

Trump’s comments were a departure from the previous positions of Pentagon and State Department officials, who have said the US will keep troops inside the country to kill the last remaining Daesh fighters and prevent the formation of another group. Only 14 US troops have been killed fighting Daesh in Iraq and Syria since the operation began four years ago.