The 500 US ground troops that remain in Syria, according to President Trump purely to control the oil, are finding themselves less and less welcome in Syria’s northeast, and officials are presenting Russia as presenting them a constant set of challenges to stay.
The challenges appear to be largely of America’s own making, with troops going on patrol into the area finding themselves having run-ins with Russian troops. The Pentagon says Russia is violating a pledge to keep US and Russian troops apart, but with Trump arguing the US is only there for the oil, it’s not clear that there’s a reason for the US troops to go on walkabouts in the Turkish-controlled border region, where Russian troops are known to be.
The most recent problem was in the city of Qamishli, where a US patrol happened on a Syrian government checkpoint. They weren’t welcome, unsurprisingly, and locals started mocking the US troops, and some threw stones. This pretty quickly escalated into a small arms exchange, with the US killing one civilian.
Russians were present for the incident, and documented it, adding to the embarrassment. The US troops shooting the civilian was the embarrassing thing, however, just to be clear. That Russia was there is a secondary matter, and this clearly wasn’t Russia’s fault.
Since the US is militarily hostile toward the Syrian government much of the time, it’s not surprising they’d call Russia to help them protect their checkpoint. These potential flashpoints are likely to continue so long as the US keeps its troops, uninvited, in Syria, and the Pentagon is clearly determined to blame Russia whenever anything happens.
It’s always Russia’s fault. The Pentagon can’t pass an audit and can’t win a war. Got to have Russia to blame for everything. Bring the troops home, Trump!
Where’s Adam Schiff when you need to blame Russia for something?
I still want to know how US oil got stuck underneath Syria. Can someone please explain how this happened?
It got there because our parents and grandparents decided to enslaves their children to Central bank cartel that owns the world according to their technocratic mandate to care for all the worlds resources…
It happened in stages. In 2011 in Syria US weaponized protests that were shaking up all Arab states. It was clear that regime change was in air. From day one, snipers were targeting both civilians and police. Literally , from day one, Islamist militants were ambushing unsuspecting police or military outposts, committing massacres. Syria documented all events with UN.
What was happening in Saudi Arabia was a budding partnership between then assistant Interior minister then, Minister of the Interior, and in 2015 Crown Prince, Mohammed Bin Nayef. He was a graduate of FBI school, later a stint at Scotland Yard. He was an architect of Syria regime change strategy along with Western counterparts.
US declared the Islamists to be “rebels” and legitimate challenge to the state and Army. Obama administration went one step further. It started training “rebels” in Jordan, arming them and transferred them into Syria. As the atrocities against
civilians grew, Obama started “vetting” the candidates for arming and training.
Effort was made to take over Turkish border, and Free Syrian Army was born.
But the groups started to fight each other, allowing Syrian Army to have some success.
There was a need to consolidate, put under one command, various militants, as well as have them consolidate Sunni areas, former Petraeus “Sunni Awakening militants, and all the Sunni militants in Syria up to Euphrates. ISIS was born. Saudi money, logistics, preachers. They took over militants East of Euphrates, but also dumped the secular Free Syrian Army. ISIS took from them them a whole string of border towns and villages.
ISIS did a booming business with Kurds, selling oil. Naturally, as we were at the time trying to undermine Erdogan, neocon propaganda was all over it, accusing Erdogan of trading with oil. Erdogan, for his part, with Qatar, started collecting thrown off Free Syrian Army, to fight ISIS as well as Kurds.
By that time, it was clear that Kurds from both sides of border are finding a way to coexist.
The moment for US to force Kurds away from Damascus came, ISIS attacked Kurdish town Kobane, and US came to help. That was the moment US stepped into Syria, took Kurds under control, and started to act like it was fighting ISIS.
As ISIS took over large part of Iraq — it looked like Caliphate was here to stay. Iraq invited US forces back, and Obama felt confident that ME was going to be restructured to the liking of Israel and Saudi Arabia, with physical barrier between Shia in Levant, and Shia in South Iraq and Iran.
But being Obama, he had to have it both ways, so that atrocities committed by ISIS were condemned, while Iraqi Army under US intelligence went from disaster to disaster.
Obama even faked fighting ISIS, attempting to replicate his Bin Laden triumph. Thus, there was ISIS leader du jour killed, but no high came from that.
That is, after Mohammed Bin Nayef became Crown Prince in 2015, it was expected that ISIS policy, with some US handwringing, was here to stay.
In October 2015 Russia entered Syria. Intelligence center was set up in Baghdad wwith Iraq, Iran and Russia. Shia militia was formed to avoid US connection. New plan of action freed up Iraq from faulty military plan, and after that Iraq went from strength to strength.
In Syria, ISIS was beaten back from all areas, other then those US claimed in its air support East of Euphrates and along Turkish border.
Once ISIS started losing, Saudis were blaming US. Why were they asked to do so much, while US and West actually decided to remove ISIIS, and control the Sunni caliphate territory by themselves?
As Iraq advanced on Mosul, and all US could do was object to Shia militia entering Mosul?
Why objection, why pretending we live Sunnis, while even Sunni tribes that once believed in US — went to negotiate with Baghdad,
In Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince and his closest circle were ousted, and King’s son appointed.
Here was nothing to do but reverse this damaging policy and stop financial bleeding. Trump came to power looking decisive — he was going to finish ISIS. But Mosul fell in fall of 2017, while US was caught without an ally to finish the job in Raqqa. So instead of letting Syrian army clean it up, Us went into building SDF, in reality YPG dominated Kutd Army to fight ISIS.
Handwriting was on the wall — Kurds were awarded the territory held by ISIS even though those were Arab, Moslem and Christian and Turkmen regions.
And then Turkey got involved directly in three separate stages, first removing ISIS to Al-Bab, clearing Afrin from YPG, and lastly, removing YPG from border, establishing joint Russian -Turkish border patrol, and Syrian Army taking over the entire North East.
US has withdrawn from Syria for the most part — an excuse to stay on border with Iraq because of “oil wells”.
What is overlooked is US Army at Al-Tanf base, 50 sq km area on Jordanian border.
US is trying to control Iraq-Syria border, and often bombing border patrols — in the name of fighting Hezzbolah.
But with Iraq now negotiating pullout, it is clear that old dreams die hard. US wants to stay in Sunni region, to rekindle Sunni-Shia sectarianism. Or rekindle anything. Stir up protests. Just to prevent losing control.
It will be hard for US to regain credibility with any group of people in broader ME. A proof is in a small detail. Russia has been asked to join investigation into Saudi facilities bombing of last September.
Now, Idlib. The ONLY real
question is, what will happen to Western outfit, HTS and White Helmets, the financing mechanism. Turkey has blocked access to Turkish border, Syria — ante portas.
What everybody seems to be taking for granted is that Turkey controls militants. NOT those in Idlib. Those are HTS funded. Turkey will take them, but only if they stop being under their leaders, and take Turkish appointed commanders, with no loyalty to group. That will be hard pill to swallow, but what are their options. They can reject Turkey’ offer, stuck with Western outfit.
But their families want security that only Turkey can offer, including exit from Idlib, salary, resettlement, even citizenship.
Without militants, HTS is a hollow shell. This where the battle lunes are drawn. Will West abandon its investment? On what pretext can they stay? Stay tuned.
i think John S’ point was that uncle samuel considers all the world’s oil to be his own.
‘Cause millions of years ago Syria was a deep seabed and eons of phytoplankton and zooplankton sank to the bottom there instead of what later would become the U.S. A., to be fossilized into oil by anaerobic bacteria, pressure and heat.
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/how-oil-is-formed/
Prez. Trump must get the troops out of Syria, no more USA blood or money. But it won’t happen because Trump thinks killing and maiming U.S. troops and blowing taxpayer money is “supporting the troops”,,what an a-Hole.
The American troops are sitting in Syria as part of regime change, and as a launch pad against Iran, and to pacify Netanyahu’s concerns about Iran having an overland connection to Lebanon.
I don’t support regime change in Syria. I blame that foolish idea for the suffering in Syria.
I don’t support war on Iran. Just do the deal we had, and honor it, and extend it with suitable offers in exchange.
I don’t support Israel’s conduct over Lebanon. Force them to make peace with Hezbollah. Yes, they could. They’d have to compromise, and they just want it all, and to go back into South Lebanon for the water too. Enough. End the Greater Israel Project. Stop them.
All that would mean we have no need to be in Syria. Those bad reasons are our only reasons.
I have a question for you.
Where exactly are US troops in Syria? It looks to me that US forces are on the border with Iraq, strolling over into Syria. Qamishli is about 50 miles from Iraqi border, and Syria controls Qamishli.
Al-Tanf base is on Jordan border. This was a place where e used to train and equip “vetted” militants snd insert into Syria.
Anyway, I do not know what is real and what is talk. We in fact may have really pulled out of Syria, while still “being there”. Perhaps to appease some rather exacting important people, but who cannot be bothered with details.
Strikes me as reckless. Which commander will send “patrols” into an area which is controlled already by Syrian, Russian or Turkish forces. The ten kilometer border zone is permanently patrolled by Russia and Turkey. Outside of it is a thirty kilometer disarmament zone set up to prevent any revival of YPG militancy in the border area. Beyond that, Syrian Army and Russian police took over towns and villages vacated by US and turned over to Syrian forces by YPG. In fact, even Kurd majority town Kobane, unofficial capital of Kurdish Rojava, is under Syrian Army control. It is not clear just how far South, Southwest, have Syrian forces moved into. SDF or YPG. do not seem to control any town in the Northeast.
US has about 50 sq km base on Jordanian border.
As far as Qamisii is concerned, it has been under Syrian control for a while, and Russia has reportedly moved RS-400 to Qamishli airport.
It was very interesting how it all came out.
After the shooting down of Ukrainian airline at Teheran, there was one out of character statement from Russian Foreign Minister, Lavrov. He mentioned that Iranian military was on high alert with 6 F-35 skirting Iranian border.
First, Russian diplomacy is very disciplined and does not comment on topics outside their brief, unless a message was intended. This is the old Imperial Russian school of diplomacy (yes, they actually have a school).
So what was the message? The message is the precision of information, confirming rumors of S-400 at Qamishli. And the tracking ability covering Iranian border.
Several times earlier US set up some random check points, but it caused a massive traffic jam on a highway. Now, Syrian forces have area more secured, so such US forces walk about can be dangerous.
Gosh, so many years and Ditz still hasn’t been indoctrinated into blame the Russians for everything that goes wrong in the Hegemony.
There is no reason for US troops to even go on patrol anywhere near Syrian checkpoints unless the commanders are idiots or they want to provoke a response which they got. The sheer hubris is incredible, they are not even welcome here.
Where’s Adam Schiff when you need to blame Russia for something?
we feel challenged by russia.. “but what we won’t talk about is the fact that the US military is in Syria in violation of international law, the laws of nations, the US Constitution and SRYIAN LAW” we also don’t want to talk about the FACT that the RUSSIANS are in SYRIA with the CONSENT OF SYRIAN GOVERNMENT..