Amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to withdraw American troops from Syria, reports have surfaced claiming that he set a condition for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to improve relations with Israel.
U.S. officials recently revealed that President Trump intends to withdraw American forces from Syria in the near future.
Recall that at the end of December, the Pentagon announced that the number of U.S. troops in Syria had been increased from 900 to 2,000. At that time, Pentagon spokesperson General Pat Ryder stated that the troops were deployed in 9 to 12-month rotations to combat ISIS, with most of the soldiers being from the U.S. Army’s ground forces.
During his campaign, Trump had called for the U.S. to refrain from intervening in developments in Syria and had expressed his intention to withdraw American forces from the region.
Now, after winning the election and assuming office, Trump is determined to fulfill this campaign promise.
According to diplomatic sources speaking to the Maariv newspaper, the U.S. president has been coordinating with President Erdoğan regarding the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria.
Diplomatic insiders suggest that Trump has conveyed to Erdoğan that the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria is contingent upon Turkey’s commitment to restoring relations with Israel, which have been severely strained since October 7.
The report noted that President Erdoğan would need to “recalculate his course” in light of this condition.
