BICOM

US President Donald Trump said he agreed 100 per cent with a request from Congress to keep a small US military contingent in Syria.

NBC News reported that a bipartisan group of Senators and Congressmen wrote to the President on 22 February and said: “We support a small American stabilising force in Syria”. A leading signatory of the letter was Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), a usually staunch Trump ally who has been fiercely critical of the Trump administration’s policy on Syria.

The letter continued: “Like you, we seek to ensure that all of the gains made in Syria are not lost, that ISIS never returns, that that Iran is not emboldened, and that we consolidate our gains and ensure the best outcome in Geneva for American interests. Those are all important objectives. An international presence will also help prevent conflict between our NATO ally Turkey and the Syrian Democratic Forces that have been central to the counter-ISIS campaign.” Trump highlighted this passage, and wrote directly on the top of the letter: “I agree 100%. ALL (sic) is being done”. The White House then sent the a photocopy of the letter, with his markings on, to the original signatories. Lindsey Graham said in response: “To the President’s credit, he adjusted his policy”.

President Trump had previously said he wished to withdraw all US forces from Syria. He said in December: “Our boys, our young women, our men, they’re all coming back and they’re coming back now. We won.” This led to the resignation of Defence Secretary James Mattis and US Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS Brett McGurk.

The Trump administration has already back-tracked on the policy of withdrawing all US forces. In late February, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said: “A small peace keeping group of about 200 will remain in Syria for a period of time”.

According to a Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) spokesperson, 3,500 people left Baghouz, the final pocket of ISIS territory in Syria yesterday. They left via a humanitarian corridor established by the SDF, a Kurdish-led group. Among them were armed ISIS fighters.