The White House said Thursday that despite President Donald Trump’s December order for a full withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria, about 200 forces will remain in the country.
The partial retreat from the President’s order was made in concession to U.S. allies and Pentagon officials who argued that the Islamic State was not completely defeated in Syria and the troops needed to stay there in order to prevent a resurgence.
The White House also said that the move came after a phone call between President Trump and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during which the two agreed to continue working together to try to create a “safe zone.”
The New York Times writes that the Thursday announcement, just like the one made in December, was made after Trump spoke to Erdogan, surprising Pentagon officials.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in her statement that “a small peacekeeping group of about 200 will remain in Syria for a period of time,” but did not provide further details.
According to a senior administration official, the move aimed to encourage France and Britain to keep troops in Syria, as well as to help secure a safe zone near the Turkish border. The official added that the American forces would be divided between At-Tanf near the Iraq-Jordan border, where they will provide logistics, intelligence and surveillance to allies.
Senator Lindsey Graham, who previously criticized the President’s withdrawal order, said that leaving some of the U.S. troops in Syria would “ensure ISIS does not return and that Iran does not fill the vacuum that would have been left if we completely withdrew.”
CNN reported recently that the commander of the US-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, General Mazloum asked the U.S. not to withdraw troops from the country in an effort to stabilize Syria, saying “I feel that American forces must remain inside of Syria. We don’t want them to leave Syria … but in the end, it is an American decision.”
The Belgian defense minister, on his part, said that European allies were open to proposals but needed a legal mandate for any Syria mission.
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