by Yoni Hersch, Ariel Kahana, News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff
U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton, currently in Israel, to discuss keeping hundreds of American troops at strategic Al-Tanf base in Syria
National Security Adviser John Bolton
Photo: AFP
Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu and his team of advisers were expected to meet with
U.S. President Donald Trump's National Security Adviser John Bolton on
Sunday evening in Jerusalem.
Netanyahu will present Bolton, who is on a
four-day trip to Israel and Turkey, with the results and ramifications
of Israel's operation to neutralize Hezbollah's cross-border tunnels.
The two will also discuss the fight against
Iran and their countries' respective new footing ahead of the planned
withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria.
A senior U.S. official in Bolton's team
told NBC News over the weekend that despite Trump's declaration that the
withdrawal would be total, an American contingent could stay behind in
Syria in the months following the pullout. The official also said the
U.S. did not have a specific timetable for the planned withdrawal,
despite reports last week that it would take place over a period of four
months. Similar comments were also made by U.S. State Department
officials, who said the pullout would be implemented in a manner that we
and our partners "continue the pressure on ISIS and don't leave behind a
vacuum for the terrorists."
Regardless of a timeline for the removal of
U.S. forces, the official in Bolton's delegation added that some of the
forces leaving Syria would be sent to Iraq. As for the forces that will
perhaps stay behind, it's highly likely those will include the several
hundred troops stationed at Al-Tanf, located on the strategic highway
connecting Tehran with Baghdad and Damascus.
Bolton is expected to raise this
possibility during his meetings in Israel. The senior American official
said the U.S. was seeking input from leaders in Israel and Jordan before
taking its next steps, including their views on the importance of the
Al-Tanf base. According to NBC, keeping troops at Al-Tanf could
alleviate Israeli concerns, and send a stern message to Iran.
In any case, Israel hopes to make the best
of the planned U.S. withdrawal, which a senior Israeli official
described as "turning lemons into lemonade."
As a reminder, Netanyahu's meeting in
Brazil last week with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo – to discuss
the American troop withdrawal – was reportedly very successful. A senior
Israeli official said Pompeo had agreed to eight of the nine requests Netanyahu made
in their meeting. He declined, however, to comment on the nature of the
requests and refused to provide information as to which request was
declined by the secretary of state.
Netanyahu also spoke with Russian President
Vladimir Putin on Friday night. The two leaders discussed the situation
in Syria and the airstrike attributed to Israel almost two weeks ago.
According to the Prime Minister's Office, Netanyahu and Putin "agreed on
the continuation of security coordination between their armies, and the
prime minister said Israel was determined to continue its efforts to
prevent Iran from establishing a military foothold in Syria."
Bolton, for his part, warned the Syrian
government on Saturday that it should not see the impending U.S.
military withdrawal as an invitation to use chemical weapons.
"There is absolutely no change in the U.S.
position against the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime and
absolutely no change in our position that any use of chemical weapons
would be met by a very strong response, as we've done twice before,"
Bolton told reporters on his plane shortly before landing in Tel Aviv.
"So the regime, the Assad regime, should be under no illusions on that question," said Bolton.
He said he was not suggesting Syria appeared ready to use chemical weapons.
"As we elaborate how the [U.S. troop]
withdrawal is going to occur and the circumstances, we don't want the
Assad regime to see what we do as representing any diminution in our
opposition to the use of weapons of mass destruction," he said.
If chemical weapons were to be used, "a lot
of options would be on the table ... if they don't heed the lessons of
those two strikes the next one will be more telling," Bolton said.
Bolton also will focus on Syria and "how
the U.S. will work with allies and partners to prevent the resurgence of
ISIS, stand fast with those who fought with us against ISIS, and
counter Iranian malign behavior in the region," according to National
Security Council spokesman Garrett Marquis, Fox News reported over the
weekend.
Pompeo will also be in the Middle East this week and will stop in eight countries.
A State Department official, speaking on
condition of anonymity to preview his trip, said the secretary's aim was
to counter "false narratives" that the U.S. is abandoning the Middle
East and to make the point that Iran continues to be a threat. "We are
not going anywhere," the official said, Fox News reported over the
weekend.
Pompeo also plans stops in Egypt, Bahrain,
the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait. The U.S.
hopes each country will play a significant role in a planned regional
strategic partnership being called an "Arab NATO."
Bolton was expected to be joined in Turkey
by veteran diplomat Jim Jeffrey and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, Gen. Joseph Dunford. They are expected to pressure Turkish
officials not to launch an offensive against Kurdish forces in Syria.
Turkey considers the Kurdish People's
Protection Units, or YPG, a terrorist group linked to an insurgency
within its own borders.
Pompeo told Newsmax Thursday that "ensuring
that the Turks don't slaughter the Kurds" was part "of the American
mission set," a comment that Turkey said showed a lack of information
about the situation.
Ibrahim Hamidi, a journalist who covers
Syrian affairs for the Saudi-owned newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, wrote in a
report published Saturday that the top commander of the YPG, Sipan
Hemo, secretly visited Damascus and Moscow where he offered "a secret
deal" that would include handing over border points to the Syrian
government in return for accepting a Kurdish local administration with
Russia as a guarantor.
Hamidi added that the offer aims to reach
"understandings to fill the gap following the American withdrawal and to
cut the road for Turkish intervention."
The talks with Russia and new overtures
towards Damascus underline a recalibration of Kurdish strategy since
Trump announced his decision to withdraw U.S. forces.
Analysts believe Assad and the YPG could eventually work together against Turkey-backed rebels in northwestern Syria.
Yoni Hersch, Ariel Kahana, News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/2019/01/06/us-to-keep-forces-in-syria-warns-assad-against-using-chemical-weapons/
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