Trump freezes funds for Syria; signals exit
US President Trump freezes more than $200 million in funds for war efforts in Syria, a move that seems to be in line with his desire for an early military exit from the war-torn country; Trump's stance puts him at odds with top US officials, who fear an early exit could facilitate Iran's entrenchment there.
US President Donald Trump on Friday froze more than $200 million in funds for recovery efforts in Syria as his administration reassesses Washington’s role in the long-drawn conflict there, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing officials.
Trump called for the freeze after reading a news report noting that Washington had recently committed an additional $200 million to support early recovery efforts in Syria, the Journal reported.
An additional aid of $200 million was pledged by departing Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in February in Kuwait at a meeting of the global coalition against Islamic State.
The decision is in line with Trump’s declaration on Thursday when he said that America would exit Syria, according to officials, the Journal reported. During a speech in Richfield, Ohio, he revealed his desire to withdraw US forces from Syria and turn over security to regional countries.
He said that based on allied victories against Islamic State militants, "We'll be coming out of Syria, like, very soon."
"Let the other people take care of it now. Very soon, very soon, we're coming out," Trump said. "We're going to get back to our country, where we belong, where we want to be."
The administration officials, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said Trump's comment during the speech reflected internal deliberations with advisers in which he has wondered aloud why US forces should remain with the militants on their heels.
Trump has made clear that "once ISIS and its remnants are destroyed that the United States would be looking toward having countries in the region playing a larger role in ensuring security and leaving it at that," one official said.
Such a policy is nowhere near complete, however, the official added.
The second official said Trump's national security advisers have told him US forces should stay in small numbers for at least a couple of years to make sure gains against the militants are held and ensure Syria does not essentially become a permanent Iranian base.
About 2,000 US troops are deployed in Syria.
Trump last year went through a similar wrenching debate over whether to withdraw US forces from Afghanistan, ultimately agreeing to keep them there but only after repeatedly raising questions of why they should stay.
Trump's view on Syria may put him at odds with those of former US ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, named by Trump a week ago to replace H.R. McMaster as White House national security adviser.
"The caliphate in Syria & Iraq is gone, but #ISIS's terrorist activities will continue and #Iran is becoming a bigger player in the region," Bolton tweeted last Oct. 20 when he was a national security analyst.
