Trump widens role of U.S. in Somalia
President Donald Trump has approved new kinds of operations for the U.S. military in Somalia, the Pentagon said Thursday, setting the stage for a wider American role there as U.S. troops team directly with Somali soldiers in offensive operations.
The authorization, approved Wednesday, is “consistent with our approach of developing capable Somali security forces and supporting regional partners in their efforts to combat al-Shabab,” said Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, referring to the al-Qaidalinked group.
U.S. troops will team with both the Somali military and the African Union Mission in Somali, a regional peacekeeping force that operates with United Nations approval.
“Somali and AMISOM forces have already achieved significant success in recapturing territory from al-Shabab, and additional U.S. support will help them increase pressure on al-Shabab and reduce the risk to our partner forces when they conduct operations,” Capt. Davis said. “We stand with the international community in supporting the Federal Government of Somalia as it strives to improve stability and security in Somalia.”
Previously, the U.S. carried out airstrikes in limited circumstances in Somalia, usually when there was an imminent threat to Americans on the ground. But senior U.S. military officials had sought leeway to approve strikes more quickly, including by establishing a zone south of Mogadishu that is considered an “area of active hostility.”
Mr. Trump signing off on the decision was first reported by The New York Times on Thursday.
The decision comes after a year in which militants took some territory back from the Somali government, and as U.S. and Somali officials prepare for regional peacekeeping forces to begin withdrawing from the country next year. The Islamic State group also is making inroads, presenting another complication, Marine Gen. Thomas Waldhauser, chief of U.S. Africa Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee on March 9.
News of the authorization came amid other U.S. foreign policy news.
Tillerson, Turks struggle
The U.S. and Turkey struggled Thursday to resolve a deep dispute over the Kurdish role in the fight against the Islamic State group but appeared no closer to a resolution as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson wrapped up his first trip to Turkey.
Bahrain F-16 deal
The Trump administration has told Congress it plans to approve a multibillion-dollar sale of F-16 fighter jets to Bahrain without the human rights conditions imposed by the State Department under President Barack Obama.
Xi to meet Trump
Elsewhere in Asia, China’s Foreign Ministry announced Thursday that Mr. Trump will meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for the first time on April 6-7 at Mr. Trump’s Florida resort amid a range of pressing issues including trade, North Korea and territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
Softer NAFTA stance?
Closer to home, Mr. Trump is set to propose keeping major planks of the North American Free Trade Agreement in place, according to a draft letter to Congress that lays out goals for renegotiating the trade pact with Canada and Mexico. But his administration is seeking to add more protections for American products and industries.