President Trump, who just five months ago said he wanted “to get out” of Syria and bring U.S. troops home soon, has agreed to a new strategy that indefinitely extends the military effort there and launches a major diplomatic push to achieve American objectives, according to senior State Department officials.
Although the military campaign against the Islamic State has been nearly completed, the administration has redefined its goals to include the exit of all Iranian military and proxy forces from Syria, and establishment of a stable, nonthreatening government acceptable to all Syrians and the international community.
Much of the motivation for the change, officials said, stems from growing doubts about whether Russia, which Trump has said could be a partner, is able and willing to help eject Iran. Russia and Iran have together been Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s principal allies in obliterating a years-long effort by domestic rebels to oust the Syrian leader.
“The new policy is we’re no longer pulling out by the end of the year,” said James Jeffrey, a retired senior Foreign Service officer who last month was named Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s “representative for Syria engagement.” About 2,200 U.S. troops are serving in Syria, virtually all of them devoted to the war against the Islamic State in the eastern third of the country.
Jeffrey said U.S. forces are to remain in the country to ensure an Iranian departure and the “enduring defeat” of the Islamic State.
“That means we are not in a hurry,” he said. Asked whether Trump had signed off on what he called “a more active approach,” Jeffrey said, “I am confident the president is on board with this.”
Jeffrey declined to describe any new military mission. But he emphasized what he said would be a “major diplomatic initiative” in the United Nations and elsewhere, and the use of economic tools, presumably including more sanctions on Iran and Russia and the stated U.S. refusal to fund reconstruction in Assad- controlled Syria.
But the more-activist policies he outlined, and only in vague terms, could increase the likelihood of a direct confrontation with Iran, and potentially with Russia.
Jeffrey’s description of a much broader U.S. role follows years of criticism from lawmakers and analysts that neither Trump nor his predecessor, Barack Obama, had a coherent strategy for Syria. Trump, like Obama, insisted that U.S. interests were focused on defeating the Islamic State, and he resisted significant involvement in the civil war against Assad raging in the rest of the country, even as both Iran and Russia increased their influence.
Jeffrey and retired U.S. Army Col. Joel Rayburn, who transferred to the State Department from the National Security Council last month to become “special envoy for Syria,” were brought in to try to create a coherent blueprint that would prevent a repeat of what the administration sees as the mistakes of Iraq — where a precipitous U.S. pullout left the field open for Iran, and for a resurgence of Sunni militants that gave birth to the Islamic State.
Pompeo first listed Iran’s withdrawal from Syria as one of 12 U.S. demands of Tehran in a May speech at the Heritage Foundation.
U.S. policy is not that “Assad must go,” Jeffrey said. “Assad has no future, but it’s not our job to get rid of him.” He said, however, that he found it hard to think of Assad as a leader who could “meet the requirements of not just us but the international community” as someone who “doesn’t threaten his neighbors” or abuse his own citizens, “doesn’t allow chemical weapons or provide a platform for Iran.”
The first test of the administration’s expanded role in Syria may come sooner rather than later in Idlib, in the northwest part of the country.
The province is the last bastion of rebel control after seven years of civil war, during which Assad, with extensive Russian and Iranian assistance, pounded opposition forces into submission. His scorched-earth tactics and, at times, use of chemical weapons have killed hundreds of thousands of civilians and driven millions from their homes.
Idlib has now become a crowded holding pen for up to 70,000 opposition fighters, along with about 2 million Syrian civilians displaced from other battle zones, and activists and aid workers trying to assist them.
Turkish military forces are also in Idlib, where they have pushed back Syrian Kurds from the Syria-Turkey border. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who fears a new exodus of Syrian refugees, is due to attend a summit in Tehran on Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.
Assad has said he is preparing a final offensive in Idlib, and Russian warplanes this week began bombing the region. Humanitarian organizations have warned of an unprecedented level of civilian bloodshed, and Trump himself has threatened U.S. retaliation if an all-out offensive is launched, especially with the use of chemical weapons.
“If it’s a slaughter, the world is going to get very, very angry. And the United States is going to get very angry, too,” Trump said Wednesday. Pompeo, Jeffrey said, has delivered the same message by telephone to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, as did White House national security adviser John Bolton in a recent meeting with his Russian counterpart.
Russia, which has beefed up its naval and other forces in the region in recent weeks, has charged that the United States is preparing to manufacture a chemical weapons attack to justify military intervention. It says its operations in Idlib are aimed at up to 14,000 fighters linked to al-Qaeda.
While the United States agrees that those forces must be wiped out, it rejects “the idea that we have to go in there . . . to clean out the terrorists, most of the people fighting . . . they’re not terrorists, but people fighting a civil war against a brutal dictator,” as well as millions of civilians, Jeffrey said. Instead, the United States has called for a cooperative approach with other outside actors.
“We’ve started using new language,” Jeffrey said, referring to previous warnings against the use of chemical weapons. Now, he said, the United States will not tolerate “an attack. Period.”
“Any offensive is to us objectionable as a reckless escalation” he said. “You add to that, if you use chemical weapons, or create refugee flows or attack innocent civilians,” and “the consequences of that are that we will shift our positions and use all of our tools to make it clear that we’ll have to find ways to achieve our goals that are less reliant on the goodwill of the Russians.”
Trump has twice authorized U.S. air and missile attacks on Syrian government targets as punishment for chemical weapons use.
Asked whether potential U.S. retaliation for any offensive in Idlib, with or without chemical weapons, would include airstrikes, Jeffrey said, “We have asked repeatedly for permission to operate,” and “that would be one way” to respond.
“In some respects, we are potentially entering a new phase, where you have forces from the different countries facing each other,” rather than pursuing their separate goals, he said, listing Russia, the United States, Iran, Turkey and Israel, which has conducted its own airstrikes against Iran-linked forces inside Syria.
“Now all of them have accomplished their primary jobs” there. “But nobody is happy with the situation in Syria.”
Wait a sec… WHY IN THE FUCK IS THIS GOD DAMNED OBAMA-ERA, BUSH-ERA SWAMP-CRITTER FAGGOT DOING IN TRUMP'S ADMINISTRATION IN ANY CAPACITY, LET ALONE AS SOMEONE CONSPIRING WITH ISRAEL AND COMMENTING PUBLICALLY ON SYRIA?
I knkw why but fucks sake this is getting obvious.
Syria, Iran, Hezbollah, and Russia defeated ISIS. Trump didn't do jack shit. "Defeating ISIS" (after ISIS has been largely defeated for what, a year now?) is just an excuse that the US uses to keep troops in Syria as human shields to keep the war going.
Ian Hernandez
He could have kept throwing more rebels in there. It's not like he had to cut the terrorist budget because the money printers at the Fed stopped working. There's no shortage of desperate, unemployed people in Iraq either. So he might be going with full-scale war to free the children. It's more his style.
Isaac Jackson
Why can't you guys ever be funny? Your memes suck.
Jace Perez
I think Hillary explained very well what needs to be done to please the chosen.
Easton Gonzalez
Yes! This is exactly what I voted for! To make ZOG and kikes stronger!
kike my ass. Let the commies come back and let us begin the show.
Charles Cook
My goal is to ensure this kike gets only one term.
Owen Martin
Is there really a benefit to voting for the lesser of 2 evils when the goal is to improve the country and the race not watch it slowly degenerate more and more year after year??
Juan Bennett
Imma vote for myself and just solve all of my narcissistic issues.
I, for one, find this hilarious. > suddenly (((chemical gas attack))) The kikes are afraid
Brody Brown
It is clear, Trumpnigger is a ZOG's employee.
Adrian Moore
This. Good luck Russia may you wipe out all those filthy Israeli proxies. I really wish our military wasn’t a bunch of gutless slaves to ugly cowardly kikes. For fucks sake God is on the side of Assad, and Trumps got Jew cock right up his big fat ass. Fucking unacceptable. I don’t accept more regime change. All these commanders don’t give a fuck about all the soldiers pouring over our southern border they care more about dirty sandnigger terrorists. This is infuriating. Death to America I mean this very sincerely. Nuke em Assad.
Liam Cruz
...
Robert Martin
Make Syria Jewish Again!
Michael Baker
The largest aid package ever wasn't enough apparently. Can't afford the wall or anything resembling security on our borders though of course. Fucking joke.
Eli Hall
Our ‘leaders’ throw our best into the meat grinder for these kike rats. Until I see different fuck you Trump and your whore daughter. Zionist slave. I don’t give a fuck about anyone in the Mideast. Assad could kill everyone and Iran could create an empire and I would cheer them on. Fuck this shit.
Luis Adams
...
Nicholas Walker
He’ll say the same thing who are you kidding? He campaigned for one thing and he was either straight up lying or he is completely powerless now that he’s actually in the White House. In fact he’ll use even stronger words. Just you wait.
You mean like every other kiked thing you shills tried to sage bomb and slide until he did it then you tried to gaslight everyone? Fuck off, Mordecai, no one is believing it anymore.
Evan Miller
nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnngays
Jordan Brooks
Lack of Hitler makes me love the taste of Jewish ass.
Austin Gonzalez
You’re not supposed to touch my eyes. Those are the fucking rules. This isn’t the ghetto, we aren’t playing by street rules.
Cameron Peterson
He became a billionaire
Isaac Perry
No one knew she is was so complicated
Ian Barnes
The defining word of Trump's presidency.
Alexander Lee
Too little, too late. CIA assets are getting their asses handed to them as we speak.
Ayden Robinson
No need for oil. American people don't want troops there. Only one reason remains.
Aaron Collins
...
Carter Garcia
THIS IS NOT UNEXPECTED, WITH THE BIRTH OF THE RED HEIFER
Jonathan Fisher
Yet like almost every verbal device employed by the jewish alt-right, it's illogical and flawed due to the fact that voting for the jewish selection of Trumpstein, is literally sitting back and doing nothing while placing all your blind faith in their jewish puppet Trump to make it all better for you.
He won't, in fact because the entire aut-right is now completely deactivated there has been absolutely zero resistance to the jewish power structure since the aut-right/Trump election began for the last few years.
Now we have boards like this filled with kikes insisting anyone refusing to campaign for and cheer on NeoRepublikiked ZOG are the "kike shills".
Dylan Sullivan
Proof Trump has zero say in what happens within the MIC.
Jonathan White
You mean the imported angus (wich are red cows) to pissreal?
Adrian Bailey
The enemy already knows the american breaking point: An all out war in the middle east. Neither the shitlib half or the cuckservative halves of the country have any interest it. Trump campaigned on it ffs. Its already a victory for syria and this is merely clean up.
Luke Parker
hasbarafag is back you guys
Carson Jenkins
...
Hunter Hall
But he's right though, and nothing he said serves jewish interests at all.
Elijah Price
the "barrel bombs" supposedly used to deploy the chemical agents were first used with effect by the IDF as well, let's not forget
sage bc not interested in another Trumpsteiner vs MAGApede d&c thread
Kevin Phillips
If Trump doesn't gtfo Syria then he should receive no help from us. Fuck him receiving any beneficial meme jobs from h8ch come election time. Dangling a wall in front of us like a carrot on a stick should not work. It is not worth the destruction of Syria for the benefit of Jews. He will not be re elected if this goes that way. Jews be damned. It is like raising a child, or making good men. We cannot reward such bad behavior.
that's some very good optics coming from the Trump administration
Xavier Hernandez
if your aim is dog feces.
Sebastian Ward
What a disastrous administration.
Juan Cox
at least he built the wall
Oliver Hall
Taking bets on how many jew dicks Trump can fit in his mouth at once.
Jack Rivera
Oh but of course he did.
See: >>12125410
Lincoln Murphy
yeah and "our best" sign up willingly to go do it. green niggers are still niggers. Dylan Roof did more to help America than the entire armed forces have done for the last century
I thought that was banned? The fuck is America doing?
Jeremiah Jones
fucking based ammrite fellow MIGApedes? :^)
Adam Martin
We need to start redpilling members of the military to what is really going on over there. Let the dissension brew within the rank and it'll be felt up the chain of command.
It has to be made abundantly clear that action against Assad in Syria or his allies on behalf of any other foreign nation is nothing short of treason, and the people will not go along with it this time like we had in Iraq.
No more wars for Israel.
Logan Flores
Half of them are there just to get the benefits and care nothing for anyone but themselves, the other half are psychos that want to do fucked up shit like this.
Hudson Turner
It may interest you to know that (((they))) have influenced more than 1,800 films and TV shows since 2005.
Jordan Lewis
go up
Jackson Jones
So the US will just be able to sit there and send in new mercenary Mujahadeen ($75 a month! Cheap!) with lots of American gear to get the war going again..
Juan Jones
It's still better than shillary. However, this faggot needs to get the fuck out of office.
Elijah Hall
No, nigger. No one is allowed free speech in the military. If you were MEN and not faggot neets you would know that.
