With US leaving, rival powers seek to move into Syria’s east
BEIRUT — The planned U.S. troop withdrawal opens up a void in the north and east of Syria, and the conflicts and rivalries among all the powers in the Middle East are converging to fill it.
The sudden American decision to pull out its 2,000 troops has forced a reassessment of old alliances and partnerships. The Syrian government, the Kurds, Russia, Iran, Israel and Turkey have all had a hand in the country’s nearly eight-year war — each in a way, fighting its own war for its own reasons within Syria. Now all of those conflicts play out in the territory being abandoned by the Americans, creating new tensions, potential chaos and bloodshed.
To reassure jittery allies, Washington sent national security adviser John Bolton to Israel on Sunday, to be followed by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who is planning an eightcountry tour of Arab allies this coming week.
Here is a look at what’s at stake.
THE TERRITORY: The area up for grabs is around a third of Syria, forming a rough triangle. To the north is the border with Turkey, to the east the border with Iraq, and the third side is the Euphrates River. This was the heart of the Islamic State group’s foothold in Syria until the United States partnered with a Kurdish militia, creating a force of some 60,000 fighters —including some Syrian Arabs and Christian Assyrians — that wrested it away from the militants.