USA are ending a decade-long military operation in Syria and withdrawing about 1,000 troops from the country. As The Wall Street Journal reports, citing three unnamed American officials, the military has already left some key facilities, and the complete withdrawal of the presence is expected to take place in the near future.
According to the publication’s sources, the military units have left the Al-Tanf garrison, located at the intersection of the borders of Syria, Jordan and Iraq, as well as the Al-Shaddadi base in the northeast of the country. The withdrawal from other American facilities is planned to be completed within two months.
“The withdrawal of troops is not related to the current deployment of US naval and air forces in the Middle East for potential strikes on Iran in the event of the failure of negotiations on the country’s nuclear program,” the media quoted one of the officials as saying.
This is not the first attempt by Washington to reduce its military presence in Syria. In 2018, during his first presidential term, Donald Trump announced his intention to withdraw approximately 2,000 American troops after declaring victory over ISIS. At that time, he noted that Turkey, which opposes the Kurds in Syria, could “fill the American vacuum.” This decision provoked opposition within his administration and led to the resignation of then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
Several hundred troops were later left in the country to protect oil fields. At the same time, Jim Jeffrey, who served as the envoy for Syria, later stated that members of the administration “are always playing the game of fiction to avoid explaining to our leadership how many troops we have there.”
