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Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna919596
U.S. Planning to Force Iran Out of Syria
(NBC News) Courtney Kube and Carol E. Lee - The Trump administration is developing a new strategy to push Iran's military and its proxy forces out of Syria. The plan would emphasize political and diplomatic efforts to force Iran out of Syria by squeezing it financially. It would withhold reconstruction aid from areas where Iranian and Russian forces are present and would impose sanctions on Russian and Iranian companies working on reconstruction in Syria. "There's a real opportunity for the U.S. and its allies to make the Iranian regime pay for its continued occupation of Syria," said Mark Dubowitz, chief executive at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. An administration official said that since last year its Syria strategy has included curbing "Iranian malign influence in Syria so that it cannot threaten the region, to include ensuring the withdrawal of Iranian-backed forces from Syria." The administration believes its renewed sanctions are having an impact already, and with continued economic pressure Iran will have trouble paying its forces in Syria.