Trump signals US withdrawal from Syria, declares victory against Daesh
TERAN(Basirat): US President Donald Trump speaks to Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker during a roundtable discussion in the Roosevelt Room of the the White House on December 18, 2018 in Washington, DC.
US President Donald Trump has declared victory against Daesh terrorists in Syria as reports suggest that he is planning to pull out American troops from the conflict-torn country.
"We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency,” Trump tweeted Wednesday, using an acronym for the terrorist group.
The declaration comes after the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post reported that Trump is preparing to "immediately” withdraw the 2,000 American troops in the country.
When asked to comment on the reports, Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said on Wednesday only that "at this time, we continue to work by, with and through our partners in the region.”
The US has reportedly more than 2,000 troops stationed in eastern Syria, in addition to several thousand others in the Arab country's north.
Trump has complained that the US has wasted trillions of dollars in Middle East wars, but gets "nothing" in return.
"We spent $7 trillion in the Middle East. And you know what we have for it? Nothing," Trump said earlier this year, promising to focus future US spending on building jobs and infrastructure at home.
The US and its allies have been bombarding what they call Daesh positions inside Syria since September 2014 without any authorization from the Damascus government or a UN mandate.
When asked to comment on the reports, Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said on Wednesday only that "at this time, we continue to work by, with and through our partners in the region.”
The US has reportedly more than 2,000 troops stationed in eastern Syria, in addition to several thousand others in the Arab country's north.
Trump has complained that the US has wasted trillions of dollars in Middle East wars, but gets "nothing" in return.
"We spent $7 trillion in the Middle East. And you know what we have for it? Nothing," Trump said earlier this year, promising to focus future US spending on building jobs and infrastructure at home.
The US and its allies have been bombarding what they call Daesh positions inside Syria since September 2014 without any authorization from the Damascus government or a UN mandate.
The strikes have on many occasions resulted in civilian casualties and failed to fulfill their declared aim of countering terrorism.
Syria has on several occasions written to the UN, complaining that the US was flagrantly violating its sovereignty. The US supports militants fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad and has repeatedly attacked Syrian army positions.
Commenting on Trump's tweet, American political analyst Stephen Lendman said, "Trump says one thing one day, something else another. Earlier he promised to withdraw US forces from Syria and Afghanistan. He increased US forces in both countries."
"The Pentagon has well over a dozen bases in Syria, mostly in the north. I strongly doubt it'll abandon them," he told Press TV.
Source:PressTV
