Posted on 10/16/2019 9:31:20 AM PDT by robowombat
President Trump said Wednesday that Turkey’s offensive against U.S.-allied Kurdish forces in northern Syria is “not our problem,” defending his decision to withdraw U.S. troops from the region amid criticism.
"If Turkey goes into Syria, it is between Turkey and Syria. It’s not our problem,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office during a meeting with Italian President Sergio Mattarella.
Trump also downplayed the U.S. alliance with the Kurds, calling them “no angels” and saying the U.S. “paid a lot of money” for the Syrian Kurdish forces to fight alongside U.S. troops against ISIS.
Trump’s remarks came as a U.S. delegation led by Vice President Mike Pence prepared to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara in an attempt to broker a ceasefire in the region.
“The Kurds are much safer right now, but the Kurds know how to fight, and as I said, they’re not angels. They’re not angels. You take a look… but they fought with us. We paid a lot of money for them to fight with us, and that’s OK,” Trump said Wednesday in the Oval Office.
"If Russia wants to get involved with Syria, that’s really up to them. They have a problem with Turkey. They have a problem at a border. It’s not our border, we shouldn’t be losing lives over it,” Trump said later.
Trump has faced tremendous blowback over his decision to withdraw U.S. troops from northern Syria as Turkey prepared to launch a military operation at the border, including harsh criticism from some of his Republican allies.
Many critics have argued that Trump’s move effectively greenlit Ankara's operation and that the president abandoned Kurdish forces, a key U.S. ally in the fight against ISIS. Turkey has long viewed the Syrian Kurds as a terrorist group.
The decision has also raised concerns about the potential for large numbers of ISIS fighters detained in the region to be released, undoing much of the work by U.S. and other forces to contain the terror group.
Administration officials have rejected the notion that Trump’s decision to pull back troops paved the way for the Turkish operation.
Trump has continued to defend his decision, saying he wants to get the U.S. out of “endless wars.” On Monday, he also announced sanctions on Turkey.
Trump also asserted that the situation on the Turkish border with Syria was “strategically brilliant” for the United States, pointing to the fact that the Kurds had struck a deal with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for protection.
"So I view the situation on the Turkish border with Syria to be, for the United States, strategically brilliant. Our soldiers are out of there. Our soldiers are totally safe. They’ve got to work it out… Syria’s protecting the Kurds, that’s good. And by the way, every player hates ISIS,” Trump said.
Trump also at one point suggested that some ISIS fighters in the region had been released for “effect” to force the U.S. to return to the region.
Pence is traveling with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Trump’s new national security adviser, Robert O’Brien, to Ankara to meet with Erdogan on Thursday in an attempt to broker a ceasefire in the region. The visit comes after Trump held a phone call with Erdogan earlier in the week.
“We’re watching and we’re negotiating and we’re trying to get Turkey to do the right thing,” Trump told reporters on Wednesday.
Tensions between Trump and Republicans showed signs of easing following the announcement of sanctions and the ceasefire efforts. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a Trump ally who vocally criticized the pullback from northern Syria, has supported Trump’s efforts on sanctions and a potential ceasefire.
-- Updated at 12:09 p.m.
Amazing how much courage Trump has, standing alone against the hordes of baying war demons — of both parties – in that town.
Oh so NOW the Kurds are no angels. Let’s rewrite history.
So when does Trump pull troops out of Turkey? Not likely right?
So if we should lose lives for Syria, why is Trump OK with losing lives in Afghanistan?
Russia/Assad are the good guys in Syria.
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” “Keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer.” “I don’t like that man very much, so I am going to try to get to know him better.”
These are all quotes from famous folks that address this topic.
>>>The Kurds are mercenaries pure and simple
And now the all volunteer US military is working as meecenaries for Saudi Arabia.
“Saudi Arabia has agreed to pay us for everything we’re doing to help them.”
Arab Spring? I thought it was the brand name of the stick deodorant male arabs preferred for the domestic animals they enjoyed regular intercourse with.
“We had no business being in Syria to start with...”
The 16 Times Obama Promised “No Boots on the Ground” in Syria”
Those pesky little facts again...
Saudi Arabia is the big buffer against Iran. And we’re clearly not going to get into nation building in Saudi Arabia, so this is just a strategic alliance.
Report back when you do. ( bet you won’t)
I met a group of young army MEN the other day at a hotel. These were fine young gentlemen of white, black, and hispanic heritage. All very polite and outstanding. The thought of them being sent into a meat grinder disgusts me.
>>>Saudi Arabia is the big buffer against Iran. And we’re clearly not going to get into nation building in Saudi Arabia, so this is just a strategic alliance.
But would we be there if Saudi wasn’t paying for it? Is putting 2,800 more troops in the line of fire truly in the national interest or is it just good business?
It may be Syria and Russia’s problem now, but pretty soon, Russia will decide they don’t need to be there either. That will leave Turkey against Assad and what is left of the Iranians. Might be fun to watch.
Trump is the lone man standing athwart history yelling stop!
IT IS NOT OUR PROBLEM! WE NEED TO STOP BEING THE WORLD’S POLICE. And under President Trump, we are stopping to be the world’s police.
+infinity for Trump
He’s absolutely right. This is a phrase American political leaders need to reacquaint themselves with.
We are not responsible for cleaning up all the world’s messes nor for fighting everybody else’s battles for them.
Maybe he only believes in dealing with on disaster at a time.
I think it’s Turkey’s never ending War
I believe that'll be next. If you recall, Trump talked about doing that a year ago, but backed off after an angry Senate GOP response. That was in the middle of the Mueller witch hunt and Trump may have wanted not to ruffle too many feathers. Now that he is going to succeed in Syria, I predict he will feel emboldened to revisit the Afghan quagmire.
Not only what you have mentioned, but have Turkey kicked out of NATO.
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