(Carla Babb at the Pentagon and Nike Ching contributed to this article.)
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump insisted Tuesday that he is not abandoning Kurdish forces in Syria, despite his orders to withdraw U.S. special forces from the Syrian-Turkish border region to make way for a Turkish incursion.
“We may be in the process of leaving Syria, but in no way have we Abandoned the Kurds, who are special people and wonderful fighters,” Trump tweeted.
“Any unforced or unnecessary fighting by Turkey will be devastating to their economy and to their very fragile currency,’ he added. “We are helping the Kurds financially/weapons!”
We may be in the process of leaving Syria, but in no way have we Abandoned the Kurds, who are special people and wonderful fighters. Likewise our relationship with Turkey, a NATO and Trading partner, has been very good. Turkey already has a large Kurdish population and fully….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)
Backlash from lawmakers
The decision prompted an immediate backlash from U.S. lawmakers, including many who have been staunch defenders of the president.
Some slammed the decision as a betrayal of the Syrian Kurds, viewed by many in Washington as the most dependable ally in the fight to destroy the IS caliphate. Other lawmakers warned the decision would only benefit Russia, Iran and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, as well as allow IS to regain momentum.
U.S. military and diplomatic officials have expressed unease with Turkey’s intentions.
“We think this operation is a very bad idea. We do not think this operation will provide more security in the fight against Daesh (Islamic State) for Turkey or for the people of the northeast,” a senior State Department official said late Monday.
Much of the concern has focused on the more than 11,000 IS fighters being held under SDF guard at more than 30 make-shift prisons across northeastern Syria.
FILE – A fighter of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) stands next to the wife of an Islamic State militant in al-Hol displacement camp in Syria, April 1, 2019.
SDF officials said some of the guards have already been pulled to reinforce positions along the border to defend against the expected Turkish operation.
A senior administration official told reporters late Monday it would be Turkey’s responsibility to both maintain the captivity of Islamic State fighters and to deal with “any sort of reconstitution of ISIS” that may occur.
But Kurdish officials tell VOA there have been no talks about transferring custody of the IS prisoners to Turkey or anyone else.
SDF officials have previously warned they may have no choice but to release the IS fighters, if forced to fend off a Turkish incursion.
