Following the recent election, the upcoming Trump administration has been discussing their plans to address various key issues in current American policy. Perhaps the least attention has been given to recent comments relating to American action in Syria, more specifically action as it relates to the various groups which make up the Syrian Democratic Forces.
The SDF is the primary armed wing of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, a coalition made up primarily of Kurdish groups which reside in Syria, as well as various Arabic and Christian groups who also inhabit the northeast. The coalition has been instrumental in the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria, which kicked off in 2014. They have continued to fight the group’s powerful remnants into the current day, holding over 9,000 militants in detention. They have also been criticized by more radical Kurdish resistance groups in Iraq for their eager cooperation with the United States through both military and economic avenues. In addition to this, and unlike their more aggressive counterparts, they have stopped openly advocating for the formation of a ‘western Kurdistan’ — a concession to non-Kurdish people who reside in their area of control.
Now I will admit, the title of this article may be a bit click-baity. Trump already abandoned the SDF during his last administration, ordering U.S. forces to step aside to allow Turkish forces to directly strike into Northern Syria, which led to a humanitarian crisis in the area. Trump also constantly rattled on about withdrawing all American troops from Syria, which I must note obviously did not end up happening. Now Trump is back and cobbling together a cabinet of lackeys, with all three branches of the government under Republican control. I do not doubt for a second that he will be far more active in enforcing his will this time around, and that does not bode well for the SDF.
This has been all but confirmed in recent statements made by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a close Trump ally and newly announced cabinet appointee. Speaking to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson during a post-election livestream, Kennedy said that Trump is in favor of pulling troops out of Syria so that they do not become “cannon fodder” in a possible Turkish-Kurdish entanglement.
Don’t get me wrong, President Joe Biden’s policy in Syria has been quite lackluster over the past four years. SDF forces have been on the receiving end of ceaseless air strikes, shelling and drone attacks coming primarily from their northern neighbor, Turkey. However, in a bit of a silver lining, the past four years have also not seen any Turkish ground incursions into SDF territory. The Biden administration has also, on very rare occasions, pushed back against Turkey and their constant aggression. Even without direct confrontation of the problem, it is my opinion that the mirage of U.S. support has helped keep the coalition alive despite being surrounded on all sides by far more aggressive and powerful neighbors who are constantly eyeing their territory.
But alas, it seems like history is going to repeat itself once again. What was done in many countries, including Afghanistan and South Vietnam, is about to be done in northeastern Syria as well. Sadly, America is now on course to abandon another one of its allies — one that is in desperate need of her support. I now call on President Trump to reconsider his seeming commitment to abandoning another ally for the sake of his “America First” agenda.
