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U.S. to Consolidate Syria Military Presence to a Single Base

Washington plans to prevent an ISIS resurgence by relying on local allies through a single Syrian base.

A soldier from the US-led coalition stands guard during a joint U.S.- Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) patrol in the countryside of Qamishli in northeastern Syria February 8, 2024. REUTERS/Orhan Qereman/File Photo

Overview

  • Special Envoy Thomas Barrack said Washington will shrink its Syria deployment from eight bases to one as part of a break from what he called a century of failed U.S. policies.
  • The shift follows President Trump’s March decision to lift sanctions and a $7 billion energy deal signed in May under Syria’s new President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
  • Approximately 2,000 U.S. troops remain in Syria, mostly concentrated in Hasakah province after withdrawing from Deir el-Zor, to partner with local forces against Islamic State remnants.
  • Washington has endorsed Damascus’s incorporation of about 3,500 foreign jihadist fighters into the Syrian army’s 84th Division and facilitated the Kurdish-led SDF’s integration into national armed forces.
  • Barrack raised the American flag over the U.S. ambassador’s residence in Damascus last week, marking Washington’s first symbolic diplomatic presence in the city since 2012.