Trump's National Security Advisor Waltz on 'our priority in Syria': ISIS and Israel details

Mike Waltz, selected by Trump as his national security advisor for his second term, said that "the focus of the U.S. presence in Syria is the fight against ISIS."

Although Waltz stated, "We don't need American boots on the ground in Syria in any capacity," he emphasized the security of Israel alongside the fight against ISIS, adding, "We must keep an eye on these issues." 

Waltz made the following remarks regarding the U.S. presence in Syria:

"Literally tens of thousands of fighters and their families are being held in prison camps guarded by our Kurdish friends with our support, and we cannot allow them to be released again. This is our primary interest; our second interest is Israel and its borders... The third is the dynamics we need to consider with our Arab partners.

Remember the times when ISIS launched attacks across Europe and the U.S. At that time, they controlled an area in the Middle East the size of Texas. This was the grand dream of Bin Laden and Al-Baghdadi...

So President Trump is absolutely right; he kept saying, 'Don't drag us into Middle East wars.' We don't need American boots on the ground in Syria in any capacity, but we must keep an eye on these issues: ISIS, Israel's borders, and the broader dynamics with our allies in the Gulf.

All of this emerged due to the pager and radio attacks carried out by Israel and its leader Benjamin Netanyahu against Hezbollah. One day, an incredible film will be made about this. I think it is one of the most courageous and effective covert operations in modern history, because they neutralized Hezbollah—which everyone said could not be done and would be too provocative—and exposed Iran's air defenses, leaving them literally vulnerable and in a state of retreat."

PENTAGON AND CENTCOM HAD RESISTED TRUMP'S WITHDRAWAL PLAN FROM SYRIA

Trump, who announced a plan to withdraw U.S. forces from Syria during his first term, has not disclosed his plans regarding the U.S. military mission in Syria for his second term. In 2018, Trump had stated that the U.S. mission in the region was complete on the grounds that ISIS had been defeated.

Following Trump's decision, although U.S. troops partially withdrew from the region, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and the Pentagon warned that this decision would empower Iran and Russia and could endanger U.S. partners in the region. Due to the backlash, a portion of U.S. forces remained in Syria.

Trump and his advisors have signaled that containing ISIS in Syria will be the most important priority during his second term. The Pentagon stated in a release last week that there are 2,000 U.S. troops in Syria.

News Source: 12punto