Daily Alert Archives

U.S. Withdrawal in Syria Isn't Such a Wonderful Gift for America's Enemies

(Ha'aretz) Yoel Guzansky and Ari Heistein - Despite claims describing the U.S. decision to relocate U.S. special forces from areas under Kurdish control in northeast Syria as a "victory" for Moscow, Tehran, and Damascus, the reality is a bit more complex. Iran, Russia, and Syria are all urging restraint, if not outright condemning Turkey's actions. While the evacuation of U.S. troops actually represented more continuity than change in U.S. regional strategy, it elicited a large outcry in the West where public sentiment is more favorable to the Kurds. Turkey is now headed into a campaign on foreign soil against a well-trained adversary in which its strategic goals and exit strategy remain unclear. Turkey's military incursion and refugee resettlement program could cost it tens of billions of dollars at a time when the country's economy is contracting. Moscow may be enjoying its role of quite literally replacing U.S. forces in Syria, but it is also worried that this new element in the Syrian conflict might breathe new life into a war that had appeared to be drawing to a close, frustrating Russian efforts to convert its successful military campaign in Syria into a political victory. Yoel Guzansky, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), worked on the Iran file at Israel's National Security Council. Ari Heistein is a policy and security consultant at INSS.
2019-10-17 00:00:00
Full Article