ESPER AT NATO: Defense Secretary Mark Esper is in Brussels where he will update fellow NATO defense ministers about his trips this week to Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq, while pressing the alliance about the importance of continuing the fight against ISIS, in the wake of what he called “Turkey’s unwarranted incursion into northern Syria,” which he said “jeopardizes the gains made there in recent years.”
In a speech and discussion this morning at the German Marshall Fund, Esper took a far different tone than his boss about the Turkish invasion of northern Syria, and the expulsion of the Kurdish forces who had been fighting ISIS with backing from the U.S.
“Turkey put us all in a very terrible situation. I mean, I think, I think the incursion was unwarranted. I think President Erdogan was fixated on making this incursion for one reason or another,” Esper said. “The U S decision to withdraw less than 50 soldiers from the zone of attack was made after it was very clear to us that Erdogan had made the decision to come across the border.”
US COULD NOT HAVE STOPPED TURKEY: Esper insisted that he had no choice but to pull U.S. troops back, and rejected criticism that keeping American forces in place, or threatening Turkey, would have prevented the assault on the Kurds.
“I was not about to put less than 50 U.S. soldiers in-between a 15,000-plus man Turkish army preceded by Turkish militia and jeopardize the lives of our young service members,” he said during the q-and-a session.
“So everybody has said, well, you could have threatened them with aircraft or you could have just kept them there in place. If I’d done that, I may be in a situation today trying to explain to the American people why I sacrificed American soldiers for that,” Esper argued. “I’m not about to throw up aircraft, and suggest that I’m going to strike a NATO ally because that’s just not feasible. We’d be having a different discussion today about the future of alliance if that had happened.”
NOBODY LIKES ISIS: Asked about ceding control of the 20-mile wide border region to Turkey and Russia, Esper stressed the U.S. would seek to continue to work with the Syrian Democratic Forces in other parts of Syria.
“Our partnership with the SDF, which was a very good one and still is a very good one by the way, was about defeating ISIS,” Esper said. “Our commitment to the Kurds was not to help them establish an autonomous Kurdish state and to defend them against Turkey. And that’s just the cold hard facts.”
“Look, nobody in the region likes ISIS. We don’t like ISIS. Europeans don’t like ISIS. Turkey doesn’t like ISIS. Syria doesn’t like ISIS. Russia doesn’t like ISIS, there are probably parts of ISIS that doesn’t like ISIS,” he continued “I think there’s a lot of us have the shared mutual interest of making sure that ISIS doesn’t resurge and become the threat that it was a few years ago.”
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TRUMP’S VICTORY LAP: In a late morning speech from the White House, President Trump claimed full credit for engineering “a great outcome” in Syria, which he said will end hundreds of years of fighting, and establish “a much more peaceful and stable area” between Turkey and Syria.
“Turkey, Syria and all forms of the Kurds have been fighting for centuries. We have done them a great service and we’ve done a great job for all of them. And now we’re getting out,” he said, adding “Let someone else fight over this long-blood-stained sand.”
Trump announced he ordered the Treasury Department to lift all sanctions against Turkey “unless something happens that we’re not happy with.”
“This was an outcome created by us, the United States, and nobody else. No other nation; very simple. And we’re willing to take blame, and we’re also willing to take credit,” Trump said in his speech, in which he alternately read from a teleprompter, while interjecting off-the-cuff observations between the prepared text.
NOTABLE LINES: The president took no questions after his address from the diplomatic reception room at the White House. Here are some of Trump’s more notable quotes from his speech:
“Today’s announcement validates our course of action with Turkey that only a couple of weeks ago was scorned. And now people are saying, ‘Wow, what a great outcome. Congratulations.’ It’s too early, to me, to be congratulated. But we’ve done a good job, we’ve saved a lot of lives.”
“You would also define the word “permanent” in that part of the world as somewhat questionable. We all understand that. But I do believe it will be permanent.”
“Countless lives are now being saved as a result of our negotiation with Turkey, an outcome reached without spilling one drop of American blood: no injuries, nobody shot, nobody killed.”
“An interesting term, ‘safe zone.’ That’s the term we’re using. Hopefully that zone will become safe.”
“I have just spoken to General Mazlum — a wonderful man, the commander in chief of the SDF Kurds — and he was extremely thankful for what the United States has done. Could not have been more thankful.”
“Now Turkey, Syria and others in the region must work to ensure that ISIS does not regain any territory. It’s their neighborhood. They have to maintain it. They have to take care of it.”
“Should Turkey fail to honor its obligations, including the protection of religious and ethnic minorities — which I truly believe they will do — we reserve the right to reimpose crippling sanctions, including substantially increased tariffs on steel and all other products coming out of Turkey.”
“The job of our military is not to police the world. Other nations must step up and do their fair share. That hasn’t taken place. Today’s breakthrough is a critical step in that direction.”
A DISSENTING OPINION: Democrats, generally speaking, were not buying Trump’s rainbows and unicorns version of events.
“President Trump’s claim that he achieved a ‘great outcome’ in Syria is misleading and delusional. He has not saved thousands of Kurdish lives, but he has benefited our adversaries and put America’s security interests at risk,” said Rhode Island Democrat Sen. Jack Reed, ranking member on the Armed Services Committee.
Reed, like many of Trump’s Congressional critics — which includes some prominent Republicans — says Trump’s endorsement of the deal worked out between Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin hands a victory to Russia and Syrian President Bashar Assad.
“The Trump Administration seems content to cede our interests in the Middle East to Putin and Assad while having no strategy to stabilize Syria or to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS, Reed said in a statement. “His decision to lift sanctions now makes clear that he was never serious about holding Turkey accountable for its incursion and the resulting violence, including killings that Secretary of Defense Esper has stated are potential war crimes.
UPON FURTHER REVIEW: One of Trump’s sharpest Republican critics has been South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, who generally is among the president’s more ardent defenders. Graham, who just days ago said Trump’s green-lighting of the Turkish invasion would be “the biggest mistake of his presidency,” issued a statement with a qualified endorsement of Trump’s vision for Syria.
“If we can create a sustainable Safe Zone – that protects Turkey’s national security interests and prevents the ethnic cleansing of our Kurdish allies – that will be historic progress,” Graham said, but added an important caveat. “It is important that the international community police this Safe Zone – not Assad, not Russia, not Turkey. This can be accomplished by America providing air power to an international force, but not committing troops on the ground to control the Safe Zone.”
“It is imperative we continue to partner with Kurdish forces to prevent ISIS from coming back,” he added. “I do not trust or believe that Turkey, Russia, or Assad have the capability or the desire to protect America from radical Islamic threats like ISIS.”
A VISA FOR MAZLOUM? Meanwhile Graham and Maryland Democrat Sen. Chris Van Hollen, who have joined forces on a sanctions bill aimed at punishing Turkey, would also like to hear firsthand just how thankful Kurdish commander Gen. Mazloum Kobani Abdi really is for Trump’s acquiescence to Turkey’s effective annexation of Kurdish controlled territory.
In a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, which is also signed by Democrats Jeanne Shaheen and Richard Blumenthal and Republican Marsha Blackburn, the senators request an expedited visa be granted should Mazloum request to visit the United States.
“To say we are extremely concerned with the situation unfolding in northern Syria is an understatement,” the letter says. “We also believe that it would be very beneficial for Congress and the Administration to hear directly from the military leadership of the SDF about the situation on the ground and the fight against ISIS.”
NATO EXPANSION: Yesterday, noting that the Senate has approved the protocol on the accession of North Macedonia to NATO, Pompeo issued a statement saying the U.S. looks forward to welcoming North Macedonia as the 30th member of the alliance, likely sometime next year.
“We strongly support North Macedonia’s continued path toward closer integration with the Trans-Atlantic community,” Pompeo said. “Yesterday’s vote reaffirmed North Macedonia’s continued dedication to democratic principles and the rule of law and contributions to peace and security throughout the region.
DoD SEEKING 5G: The Pentagon announced yesterday it will will issue a draft Request for Proposals next month for a “large-scale experimentation and prototyping of 5G technologies.”
“The draft RFP will include a description of four U.S. military installations where initial 5G experimentation will take place and will give industry an opportunity to provide feedback before the final RFP is issued,” according to a statement.
The Rundown
Washington Examiner: ‘Pretty cynical’: US diplomat contradicts Trump’s praise for Turkey-Russia deal
AP: Analysis: Trump’s ‘success’ in Syria cedes region to Russia
Washington Examiner: ‘We do not know where they are’: More than 100 ISIS prisoners missing in
Reuters: As Syria’s War Mutates, Kurds Worry That Damascus Will Return
Washington Examiner: ‘We’ve both been downrange’: New generation of vets in Congress lead future-wars task force
New York Times: Taliban Rocket Attack Wounds 5 Marines at U.S. Base in Afghanistan
Washington Post: Boeing’s third-quarter revenue and profit fall as costs of the 737 Max crisis accumulate
Wall Street Journal: China Has ‘Concerning’ Leads Over U.S. in Tech, Defense Department Official Says
USNI News: SECNAV Spencer Rebuts Congressional Criticism of Ford Carrier Program
Bloomberg: Pentagon Backs Contractors to Limit Disclosing Foreign Discounts
Defense One: As Secret Pentagon Spending Rises, Defense Firms Cash in
AP: North Korea urges US to act wisely through year-end deadline
Task & Purpose: Here’s why the Pentagon may not comply with the Trump impeachment inquiry
CNN.com: Melting Glaciers In The Russian Arctic Reveal Five New Islands
Forbes: The Navy’s Tomahawk Cruise Missile Is Becoming More Lethal, More Versatile
Calendar
THURSDAY | OCTOBER 24
All day. NATO Headquarters, Brussels — Meeting of NATO’s North Atlantic Council at the level of Defense Ministers. Possible Mark Esper news conference https://www.nato.int
8 a.m. 11100 Johns Hopkins Rd. — Day three of the Precision Strike Association’s symposium “Flipping the Game: Imposing Cost Through Multi-Domain Precision Strike,” with Air Force Maj. Gen. David Krumm, director of global power programs in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics. https://www.precisionstrike.org/events
8 a.m. 100 Westgate Circle, Annapolis — Day three of the National Defense Industrial Association Expeditionary Warfare Conference with Rear Adm. Steve Parode, director of the Navy’s Warfare Integration Directorate. https://www.ndia.org/events/2019/10/22/24th-ewc
8:30 a.m. 529 14th Street, N.W. — House Armed Services Committee Chairman Rep. Adam Smith delivers remarks on the future of U.S. nuclear policy, at a briefing sponsored by the Ploughshares Fund. Also taking part: Kelly Magsamen, vice president for national security and international policy at the Center for American Progress; Mieke Eoyang, vice president of Third Way’s National Security Program; and Kennette Benedict, board member at the Ploughshares Fund. https://www.ploughshares.org/issues
9:30 a.m. G-50 Dirksen. — Senate Armed Services Committee committee hearing on the nomination of Navy Vice Adm. Charles Richard to be commander of the U.S. Strategic Command. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov
10 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. N.E. — Heritage Foundation discussion on “Recent Business Reform and Opportunities for Trade and Investment in Afghanistan,” with Acting Afghanistan Minister of Industry and Commerce Ajmal Ahmady; and Terry Miller, director of the Heritage Center for International Trade and Economics http://www.heritage.org
FRIDAY I OCTOBER 25
8:30 a.m. 2300 Wilson Blvd., Arl. — Military Reporters & Editors association annual conference, with Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy; Undersecretary of the Navy Thomas Modly; Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Robert Burke; Virginia Rep. Rob Wittman; and others Full agenda at https://militaryreporters.org/2019
9:30 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. N.E Heritage Foundation discussion “Treating the Pathologies of Victory: Hardening the Nation for Strategic Competition,” with retired Air Force Col. Tom Ehrhard; and Dakota Wood, senior research fellow for defense programs at the Heritage Foundation. http://www.heritage.org
12:30 p.m. 1777 F St. N.W. — Council on Foreign Relations discussion on “U.S.-Turkey Relations: The Shifting Nature of Two NATO Allies,” with Henri Barkey, chair in international relations at Lehigh University; Naz Durakoglu, senior policy adviser in the Office of Senator Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.; and Gonul Tol, founding director of the Middle East Institute’s Center for Turkish Studies. http://www.cfr.org
2 p.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. N.E. — Heritage Foundation lecture on “Honoring America’s Veterans Through Improved Care and Services,” with Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie; and Kim Holmes, executive vice president of Heritage nhttp://www.heritage.org
TUESDAY I OCTOBER 29
9:30 a.m. G-50 Dirksen — Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the nominations of Dana S. Deasy to be CIO of the Defense Department; and Robert John Sander to be general counsel of the Department of the Navy. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/hearings
10 a.m. 2118 Rayburn. — House Armed Services Committee Future of Defense Task Force Hearing: “Theories of Victory,” with Michele Flournoy, co-founder and managing partner WestExec Advisors; and Jim Talent co-chair Reagan Institute Task Force.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I’m not about to throw up aircraft, and suggest that I’m going to strike a NATO ally because that’s just not feasible. We’d be having a different discussion today about the future of alliance if that had happened.”
Defense Secretary Mark Esper, speaking in Brussels, about why he didn’t use the threat U.S. airpower to deter Turkey from attacking the Syrian Kurds.
