President Trump should avoid making any “unilateral concessions” about Syria to Russian President Vladimir Putin, a pair of leading Democrats warned Monday.
“President Trump [should] reject any Russian demands with respect to Syria,” said New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez and New York Rep. Eliot Engel, the top Democrats on the congressional committees overseeing the State Department and foreign policy.
Trump is meeting Putin in Helsinki for their first bilateral meeting of his presidency. The encounter should allow the leaders to discuss two theaters in which the United States and Russia are at odds — Syria, where Russia and Iran have partnered to back Bashar Assad’s regime, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Congress sanctioned Russia for its actions in both regions, as well as the 2016 election interference, a move that has factored into the cratering of bilateral relations.
“We are profoundly concerned that unilateral U.S. concessions regarding a tenable path forward in Syria will further undermine civilian protection, empower Iran, and jeopardize Israel’s security,” Menendez and Engel said. “We urge President Trump to demand that President Putin uphold and implement Russian obligations related to Iranian presence in Syria and commit to a political process that ends the conflict.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been negotiating with Putin over the extent of Iran’s presence in Syria, while also carrying out an airstrikes against Iranian forces. The Israeli leader reportedly has agreed not to target the Assad regime, in exchange for Putin guaranteeing the withdrawal of Iran.
“We haven’t had a problem with the Assad regime, for 40 years not a single bullet was fired on the Golan Heights,” Netanyahu said Thursday. “I have set a clear policy that we do not intervene and we have not intervened. This has not changed. What has troubled us is ISIS and Hezbollah and this has not changed. The heart of the matter is preserving our freedom of action against anyone who acts against us. Second, the removal of the Iranians from Syrian territory.”
Assad has remained in power on the strength of Russian air support and Iranian ground forces. Netanyahu’s negotiations with Putin are taking place as the Assad regime is trying to gain control of key territory in southern Syria, in violation of a cease-fire agreement negotiated between Putin and Trump last year.
“The Trump administration can and should do more to compel the regime and its enablers to commit to a political process and a diminished Iranian role in Syria,” the Democratic lawmakers said. “The war in Syria will only end with an inclusive political settlement. To help achieve this outcome, we are committed to enacting the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, which would impose harsh sanctions on industries that benefit from or fuel the Assad regime’s war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
