Trump Endorses Turkish Military Operation in Syria, Shifting U.S. Policy

Trump Endorses Turkish Military Operation in Syria, Shifting U.S. Policy

Kurdish fighters in Baghuz, Syria, in February. Turkey considers the Kurdish fighters to be a terrorist insurgency, and has long sought to end American support for the group.CreditCreditIvor Prickett for The New York Times

By Eric Schmitt and Maggie Haberman at the NY Times

Oct. 7, 2019, 12:44 a.m. ET

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/07/us/politics/trump-turkey-syria.html?action=click&module=Top Stories&pgtype=Homepage

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WASHINGTON — In a major shift in United States military policy in Syria, the White House said on Sunday that President Trump had given his endorsement for a Turkish military operation that would sweep away American-backed Kurdish forces near the border in Syria.

Turkey considers the Kurdish fighters to be a terrorist insurgency, and has long sought to end American support for the group. But the Kurdish group, known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, or S.D.F., has been the United States’ most reliable partner in fighting the Islamic State in a strategic corner of northern Syria.

Now, Mr. Trump’s decision goes against the recommendations of top officials in the Pentagon and the State Department who have sought to keep a small troop presence in northeast Syria to continue counterinsurgency operations against the Islamic State, or ISIS, and to act as a critical counterweight to Iran and Russia.

Administration officials said that Mr. Trump spoke directly with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey on the issue on Sunday. And the officials indicated that the 100 to 150 United States military personnel deployed to that area would be pulled back in advance of any Turkish operation but that they would not be completely withdrawn from Syria.

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