US withdrawing forces from Syria? Hold the cheers

By Stephen Lendman

I previously explained that US special forces operate in three-fourths of world countries, thousands in Syria alone.

They operate on up to 18 bases in northern and southern parts of the country. In September, construction of a new base began in Deir Ezzor province.

The Arabic-language al-Watan broadsheet quoted opposition sources, saying the Pentagon intends enhancing its military presence on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River in the final months of 2018.

Last week, Pentagon spokesman Colonel Rob Manning said the US finalized the establishment of observation posts in northeast Syria along Turkey’s border, coordinating things with Ankara.

US-led terror-bombing continues, virtually on a daily basis, massacring civilians, destroying vital infrastructure, a campaign not about to end.

It’s unjustifiably justified by waging phony war on Daesh, supporting the scourge Republicans, undemocratic Dems, and Pentagon commanders pretend to oppose.

Washington’s involvement in Syria isn’t about to end as long as Bashar al-Assad remains in power. The Obama regime’s war on the country, escalated by Trump, was and remains all about regime change - using Daesh and other extremists as proxy troops, supported by US-led terror-bombing.

Republican and Dem hardliners want pro-Western puppet rule replacing Assad, isolating Iran ahead of a similar scheme to topple its government - by color revolution, an old-fashioned coup d’etat, or naked aggression, the latter strategy Washington’s favorite option.

On Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal quoted a Pentagon source, saying it “has an order to move troops out of Syria as quickly as possible.” 

Reportedly it’ll be completed in 60 to 100 days, perhaps shifting them cross-border to Iraq or elsewhere regionally, a redeployment, not a strategic change.

An unnamed White House official was quoted, saying the US intends using “tools of national power, including economic sanctions and diplomatic pressure” against Iran.

Perhaps what’s going on against the Islamic Republic is prelude for war on the country, madness if launched, the potentially devastating fallout discussed in previous articles.

War on Iran would be much different than attacking Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Yemen. Its military is powerful enough to hit back hard - including against US regional forces, Israeli cities, and its nuclear sites.

On December 19, Trump tweeted: “We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump presidency.” 

An unnamed White House official said “US forces will continue the fight against ISIS.” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said US forces “defeated the territorial caliphate.” 

The process of “returning US troops home” has begun “as we transition to the next phase of this campaign,” adding: Washington has no intention of “end(ing) (its) global coalition or its campaign.”

The Trump regime and its “allies stand ready to re-engage at all levels to defend American interests whenever necessary, and we will continue to work together” against nonexistent threats to US security.

Draw your own conclusions from her comments. Whatever Trump regime hardliners have in mind, ending war in Syria and US involvement in the country isn’t part of it.

Trump lied about defeating the scourge of Daesh the US supports - along with al-Qaeda, its al-Nusra offshoot, and other regional terrorist groups.  

According to the Journal, “(a) pullout of Syria is still widely opposed by top officials in the White House and the Pentagon, and US military officials have refused to say what a withdrawal will could look like.”

Previous articles explained that US forces came to Syria, other US war theaters, and most nations worldwide to stay, not leave. It’s been this way at least since the Balkan wars of the 1990s and all post-9/11 US wars of aggression.

Trump is the latest in a long line of US warrior presidents. Like the Clintons, Bush/Cheney, Obama, and bipartisan congressional hardliners, he has a disturbing record of saying one thing and doing another.

He’s hostage to America’s military-industrial complex like his predecessors, continuing wars he inherited, escalated them, planning new ones, heading things ominously toward possible war with Russia, China, and/or Iran.

The prospect of turning a page in Syria for peace and stability by ending Washington’s involvement flies in the face of its imperial agenda for colonizing planet earth, controlling its resources, and exploiting its people.

It’s unclear what will follow Trump’s Wednesday announcement. It’s very clear that Washington’s rage for global dominance remains unchanged.

VISIT MY NEW WEB SITE: stephenlendman.org. Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. 
 
My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III." http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Stephen Lendman is an American author and radio host who hosts the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network three times weekly. 

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