US forces in the Syrian town of al-Tanaf, by Hammurabi’s Justice News
On March 30, two unnamed senior US officials revealed to Reuters that US President Donald Trump had informed his advisers that he wants to withdraw US troops from Syria soon. One of the officials said that Trump loudly questioned why the US should remain in Syria during a discussion with his advisers.
“Once ISIS and its remnants are destroyed that the United States would be looking toward having countries in the region playing a larger role in ensuring security and leaving it at that,” the official said explaining Trump’s new stand on Syria.
The second official told Reuters that Trump’s advisers had warned him during the discussion that an early withdraw from Syria will strengthen the Iranian influence in the war-torn country and could allow terrorist groups to resurface in the liberated areas.
Trump announced during a speech in the state of Ohio on March 29 that the US will withdraw its troops from Syria “very soon” and let “other people” handle the situation there. However, several US officials denied that such a plan exists.
Observers believe that Trump’s decision to withdraw earlier than expected from Syria will cause a split within the US administration, as many senior US officials are not only against a US withdrawal, but even call for more involvement in Syria.
