Presence of US forces in Syria 'wrong and illogical' move from start: Iran
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The US withdrawal could have major geopolitical ramifications, and plunges into uncertainty the fate of US-backed Kurdish fighters.
After US President Donald Trump announced to withdraw around 2,000 US troops from Syria, Iran on Saturday said the US presence in Syria had been "wrong and illogical" from the start.
"The presence of American forces was from the very start, in principle, a wrong and illogical move and a primary cause of instability and insecurity in the region," said Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi.
On November 19, Trump tweeted out saying, "We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency." After the tweet, a US official confirmed that troops will be pulled back from Syria.
We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 19, 2018
Later, Trump also tweeted defending his controversial decision, adding that the United States does not want to be the "Policeman" of the Middle East.
Does the USA want to be the Policeman of the Middle East, getting NOTHING but spending precious lives and trillions of dollars protecting others who, in almost all cases, do not appreciate what we are doing? Do we want to be there forever? Time for others to finally fight.....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 20, 2018
Russian president Vladimir Putin backed Trump's decision and said, "The fact that the US has decided to withdraw its troops is right."
Putin also said that "as concerns victory over IS, on the whole I agree with the US president," adding that "we have dealt serious blows against IS in Syria."
The US withdrawal could have major geopolitical ramifications, and plunges into uncertainty the fate of US-backed Kurdish fighters who have been tackling Islamic State jihadists, thousands of whom are thought to remain in Syria.