The White House said in a statement Wednesday that the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria is approaching completion, but did not indicate any change for the time being in troop levels, despite suggestions to that effect from the president in recent days.
“The military mission to eradicate ISIS in Syria is coming to a rapid end, with ISIS being almost completely destroyed,” said press secretary Sarah Sanders. “The United States and our partners remain committed to eliminating the small ISIS presence in Syria that our forces have not already eradicated.”
The statement concluded: “We will continue to consult with our allies and friends regarding future plans. We expect countries in the region and beyond, plus the United Nations, to work toward peace and ensure that ISIS never re-emerges.”
President Trump has indicated repeatedly that the U.S. will soon be withdrawing from Syria, where it has 2,000 troops on the ground as part of a mission to defeat ISIS.
He reportedly surprised Pentagon officials when he said at an Ohio event last week that the U.S. “will be coming out of Syria, like, very soon.” “Let the other people take care of it now,” he said. The White House then froze $200 million in U.S. assistance earmarked for Syria recovery efforts.
Trump reiterated his desire for withdrawal during a news conference Tuesday, saying that the U.S. has gotten “nothing” out of its various missions in the Middle East, from Afghanistan to Syria.
“I want to get out. I want to bring our troops back home. I want to start rebuilding our nation,” he said. “We will have, as of three months ago, $7 trillion in the Middle East over the last 17 years. We get nothing out of it, nothing.”
My colleague Mike Warren reported Tuesday that Trump is “very conscious” of the effects that a withdrawal could have in Syria, with the 2011 withdrawal from Iraq fresh on his mind:
The Washington Post reported earlier Wednesday that the president has “instructed military leaders to prepare to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria” at some point in the future. Trump reportedly said Tuesday that the U.S. efforts in Syria should focus on defeating ISIS, including training local forces so that liberated areas remain secure. But he said that other countries must take care of “paying for reconstruction of stabilized areas, including sending their own troops, if necessary.”
