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Trump's comments echo those he gave in his first term when he pushed for the removal of all US personnel from Syria.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFF DECEMBER 7, 2024 17:35 Updated: DECEMBER 7, 2024 18:16
US President-elect Donald Trump attends the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) gala at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, US, November 14, 2024.
(photo credit: REUTERS/CARLOS BARRIA/FILE PHOTO)
President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States should not interfere in Syria in a post on social media site Truth Social.
"Syria is a mess but is not our friend, & THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!" Trump said.
He also said that the rebels in Syria are on the outskirts of Damascus and are preparing for a major move to remove Assad.
Trump said that because Russia is busy fighting a war with Ukraine, it "seems incapable of stopping this literal march through Syria, a country they have protected for years."
If Russia were forced out of Syria, it "may actually be the best thing that can happen to them" because "there was never much of a benefit in Syria for Russia," Trump said.
A return to isolationism?
Trump's comments echo those he gave in his first term when he pushed for the removal of all US personnel from Syria.
His withdrawal of US troops in 2019 was seen as something that exposed the SDF-Kurdish forces to a Turkish invasion of northern Syria, which ultimately led to them signing agreements with Assad, helping him to preserve his regime.
At the time, Trump dismissed the possibility of the return of major jihadist forces to Syria, saying, "By the way, everybody hates ISIS."
"I campaigned on bringing our soldiers back home, and that's what I am doing," he explained at the time.
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