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Sweatshop - Pure Drama
Political Fray
Why the Left believes what they do
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<blockquote data-quote="1Holliday1" data-source="post: 509407" data-attributes="member: 1403"><p>[URL unfurl="true"]https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/30/russians-us-troops-syria-uproar-trump-345584[/URL]</p><p>\</p><p>Russian forces are encroaching on U.S. troop-controlled territory in eastern Syria — part of what officials say is a deliberate campaign to squeeze the U.S. military out of the region, according to two current U.S. officials and one former U.S. official.</p><p>The growing friction between U.S. and Russian troops in Syria comes against a backdrop of deepening mistrust between the national security community and President Donald Trump’s White House over dealings with Moscow. The tension burst into the open last week with revelations that Russia’s secretive military intelligence service offered bounties to the Taliban for killing U.S. and coalition troops in Afghanistan. Lawmakers demanded answers this week amid bipartisan anger that the Trump administration has known about the bounties for months but has not yet authorized a response to Russia.</p><p>Trump has denied being briefed on the bounties, but a Western defense official confirmed the arrangement to POLITICO. Other administration officials have said the intelligence is still being evaluated and have criticized the media for reporting on the issue.</p><p></p><p>The disclosure of the bounty program has highlighted emerging frictions between the U.S. and Russia in other areas, including in Syria.</p><p>For years, the two countries have at times supported opposing sides in the long-running civil war — with Moscow propping up Syrian President Bashar al Assad and Washington eventually supporting Kurdish fighters who have pushed for de facto autonomy from the regime. Yet over the course of the war, the U.S. and Russian militaries have communicated regularly in order to deconflict their respective forces on the crowded Syrian battle space. In the first years of the Trump administration, the White House even pushed the Pentagon to increase cooperation with the Russian military in Syria, three former Trump administration officials said.</p><p>The directive was disturbing to some members of the national security community, given that Russia has committed war crimes against civilians in Syria.</p><p>“They told us we needed to work with Russia and not just ignore them,” said one of the former officials. “We did it, but limited it to just [deconfliction].”</p><p></p><p>[URL unfurl="true"]https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-applauds-russia-victory-syria-handing-platter-2019-10[/URL]</p><p></p><p>President <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-donald-trump-bio-age-family-key-positions-2019-4" target="_blank">Donald Trump's</a> decision to withdraw US troops from northeast Syria has handed a big victory to Moscow — and he's apparently fine with that. </p><p></p><p>Trump on Monday said anyone, including Russia and China, who wants to protect the Kurds in Syria is "good" with him.</p><p></p><p>By withdrawing US troops from northeast Syria earlier this month, Trump opened the door for a Turkish military incursion against Kurdish forces who played a key role in the US-led fight against ISIS. </p><p></p><p>The presence of US forces in northeast Syria was the only thing preventing Turkey, a fellow NATO member, from launching the invasion into the region. Once Trump withdraw US troops, Turkey launched the incursion within three days.</p><p></p><p>Kurdish forces referred to the move as a "stab in the back." Meanwhile, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/republicans-former-us-officials-slam-trump-abandoning-kurds-in-syria-2019-10" target="_blank">US lawmakers and former officials promptly warned Trump</a> his decision would create a security vacuum that US foes could take advantage of. </p><p></p><p>[URL unfurl="true"]https://www.euractiv.com/section/global-europe/news/allies-stunned-russia-delighted-from-trumps-decision-to-withdraw-from-syria/[/URL]</p><p></p><p>US President Donald Trump overrode his top national security aides, blindsided US ground commanders, and stunned lawmakers and allies with his order for US troops to leave Syria, a decision that upends American policy in the Middle East.</p><p></p><p>The result, said current and former officials and people briefed on the decision, will empower Russia and Iran and leave unfinished the goal of erasing the risk that Islamic State, or ISIS, which has lost all but a sliver territory, could rebuild.</p><p></p><p>The move, which carries echoes of Trump’s repudiation of the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris climate change accord, is in keeping with his America First philosophy and the pledge he made to end US military involvement.</p><p></p><p>A former senior Trump administration official said the president’s decision basically was made two years ago, and that Trump finally stared down what he considered unpersuasive advice to stay in.</p><p></p><p>“The president won. His inclination was always not to be there,” said the former official who is close to the White House, saying a variety of senior advisers had all argued against pulling out.</p><p></p><p>In meetings with top advisers, Trump would ask: “What are we doing there? I know we’re there to fight ISIS, but we did it. Now what?” said the former official.</p><p></p><p>Trump understood, but rejected, arguments by senior advisers that US troops were not on the front lines, numbered only 2,000 and markedly strengthened anti-Islamic State local forces, saying he wanted to get out once Raqqa and other ISIS strongholds fell.</p><p></p><p><strong>Benefits for Iran, Turkey</strong></p><p></p><p>A US defense official said Trump’s decision was widely seen in the Pentagon as benefiting Russia as well as Iran, both of which have used their support for the Syrian government to bolster their regional influence. Iran also has improved its ability to ship arms to Lebanese Hezbollah for use against Israel.</p><p></p><p>Asked who gained from the withdrawal, the defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, replied: “Geopolitically Russia, regionally Iran.”</p><p></p><p>Syrian Kurdish allies of the United States reacted with alarm Wednesday. A rapid withdrawal they say will leave them vulnerable to an offensive Turkey has threatened to launch against them east of the Euphrates river — and would likely lead to a peeling away of Arab fighters aligned with them who are being courted by Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad.</p><p></p><p>On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said he was ready to launch a new cross-border military operation at any moment against the Kurdish Peoples’ Protection Units, or YPG, which have been shielded from Turkey by the US military presence.</p><p></p><p> etc etc etc. Trump weak on Russia. Loves Putin.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="1Holliday1, post: 509407, member: 1403"] [URL unfurl="true"]https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/30/russians-us-troops-syria-uproar-trump-345584[/URL] \ Russian forces are encroaching on U.S. troop-controlled territory in eastern Syria — part of what officials say is a deliberate campaign to squeeze the U.S. military out of the region, according to two current U.S. officials and one former U.S. official. The growing friction between U.S. and Russian troops in Syria comes against a backdrop of deepening mistrust between the national security community and President Donald Trump’s White House over dealings with Moscow. The tension burst into the open last week with revelations that Russia’s secretive military intelligence service offered bounties to the Taliban for killing U.S. and coalition troops in Afghanistan. Lawmakers demanded answers this week amid bipartisan anger that the Trump administration has known about the bounties for months but has not yet authorized a response to Russia. Trump has denied being briefed on the bounties, but a Western defense official confirmed the arrangement to POLITICO. Other administration officials have said the intelligence is still being evaluated and have criticized the media for reporting on the issue. The disclosure of the bounty program has highlighted emerging frictions between the U.S. and Russia in other areas, including in Syria. For years, the two countries have at times supported opposing sides in the long-running civil war — with Moscow propping up Syrian President Bashar al Assad and Washington eventually supporting Kurdish fighters who have pushed for de facto autonomy from the regime. Yet over the course of the war, the U.S. and Russian militaries have communicated regularly in order to deconflict their respective forces on the crowded Syrian battle space. In the first years of the Trump administration, the White House even pushed the Pentagon to increase cooperation with the Russian military in Syria, three former Trump administration officials said. The directive was disturbing to some members of the national security community, given that Russia has committed war crimes against civilians in Syria. “They told us we needed to work with Russia and not just ignore them,” said one of the former officials. “We did it, but limited it to just [deconfliction].” [URL unfurl="true"]https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-applauds-russia-victory-syria-handing-platter-2019-10[/URL] President [URL='https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-donald-trump-bio-age-family-key-positions-2019-4']Donald Trump's[/URL] decision to withdraw US troops from northeast Syria has handed a big victory to Moscow — and he's apparently fine with that. Trump on Monday said anyone, including Russia and China, who wants to protect the Kurds in Syria is "good" with him. By withdrawing US troops from northeast Syria earlier this month, Trump opened the door for a Turkish military incursion against Kurdish forces who played a key role in the US-led fight against ISIS. The presence of US forces in northeast Syria was the only thing preventing Turkey, a fellow NATO member, from launching the invasion into the region. Once Trump withdraw US troops, Turkey launched the incursion within three days. Kurdish forces referred to the move as a "stab in the back." Meanwhile, [URL='https://www.businessinsider.com/republicans-former-us-officials-slam-trump-abandoning-kurds-in-syria-2019-10']US lawmakers and former officials promptly warned Trump[/URL] his decision would create a security vacuum that US foes could take advantage of. [URL unfurl="true"]https://www.euractiv.com/section/global-europe/news/allies-stunned-russia-delighted-from-trumps-decision-to-withdraw-from-syria/[/URL] US President Donald Trump overrode his top national security aides, blindsided US ground commanders, and stunned lawmakers and allies with his order for US troops to leave Syria, a decision that upends American policy in the Middle East. The result, said current and former officials and people briefed on the decision, will empower Russia and Iran and leave unfinished the goal of erasing the risk that Islamic State, or ISIS, which has lost all but a sliver territory, could rebuild. The move, which carries echoes of Trump’s repudiation of the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris climate change accord, is in keeping with his America First philosophy and the pledge he made to end US military involvement. A former senior Trump administration official said the president’s decision basically was made two years ago, and that Trump finally stared down what he considered unpersuasive advice to stay in. “The president won. His inclination was always not to be there,” said the former official who is close to the White House, saying a variety of senior advisers had all argued against pulling out. In meetings with top advisers, Trump would ask: “What are we doing there? I know we’re there to fight ISIS, but we did it. Now what?” said the former official. Trump understood, but rejected, arguments by senior advisers that US troops were not on the front lines, numbered only 2,000 and markedly strengthened anti-Islamic State local forces, saying he wanted to get out once Raqqa and other ISIS strongholds fell. [B]Benefits for Iran, Turkey[/B] A US defense official said Trump’s decision was widely seen in the Pentagon as benefiting Russia as well as Iran, both of which have used their support for the Syrian government to bolster their regional influence. Iran also has improved its ability to ship arms to Lebanese Hezbollah for use against Israel. Asked who gained from the withdrawal, the defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, replied: “Geopolitically Russia, regionally Iran.” Syrian Kurdish allies of the United States reacted with alarm Wednesday. A rapid withdrawal they say will leave them vulnerable to an offensive Turkey has threatened to launch against them east of the Euphrates river — and would likely lead to a peeling away of Arab fighters aligned with them who are being courted by Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said he was ready to launch a new cross-border military operation at any moment against the Kurdish Peoples’ Protection Units, or YPG, which have been shielded from Turkey by the US military presence. etc etc etc. Trump weak on Russia. Loves Putin. [/QUOTE]
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Sweatshop - Pure Drama
Political Fray
Why the Left believes what they do
