 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 By Jim MANNION Washington (AFP) Feb 3, 2019
Pushing back against Republican opposition, US President Donald Trump reaffirmed his determination to pull US troops out of "endless wars" in Syria and Afghanistan, in an interview that aired Sunday. But he said they would stay in Iraq to watch Iran. Trump cited the high cost in blood and money after years of fighting in Afghanistan, in arguing for a US withdrawal from the place where the 9/11 attacks were hatched. "It's time," he said in the interview with CBS's "Face the Nation." "And we'll see what happens with the Taliban. They want peace. They're tired. Everybody's tired." Trump's comments come in the face of warnings by US intelligence chiefs that a hasty US withdrawal from Afghanistan and Syria could allow a resurgence by Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group. On Thursday, the US Senate voted overwhelmingly for a measure sponsored by Mitch McConnell, the majority leader of Trump's Republican party, warning against a "precipitous withdrawal" from either country. But Trump appeared unmoved by the rare Republican pushback, noting that his promises to bring US troops home was "a big part" of the reason he was elected. US officials have been holding talks in Qatar with the Taliban on a framework for peace negotiations, raising prospects for a breakthrough in the 17-year-old conflict. On Syria, Trump said the 2,000 US troops in the country to assist local forces would leave "in a matter of time" but cited the need to protect Israel "and other things that we have" for slowing down -- after initially announcing an immediate pull-out. He said he will soon be announcing the recapture of "100 percent of the caliphate" once claimed by the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria. "We're at 99 percent right now. We'll be at 100," said the president, who was expected to make the announcement during his annual State of the Union address on Tuesday. - 'Pockets of something' - In a report to Congress last week, US intelligence leaders warned that IS still commands thousands of fighters in Iraq and Syria, and they could easily spring back in the absence of US forces. Trump responded by rebuking as "naive" and "wrong" his intelligence chiefs, who also had appeared to contradict him on Iran and North Korea. In the CBS interview, he played down the danger of an extremist resurgence but said "we'll come back if we have to." "You're going to always have pockets of something," he said. "But you're not going to keep armies there because you have a few people. Or you even have fairly reasonable numbers of people." - Watching Iran - However, the United States will not give up its bases in Iraq, he said. "We spent a fortune on building this incredible base. We might as well keep it. And one of the reasons I want to keep it is because I want to be looking a little bit at Iran because Iran is a real problem," he said. The US military presence in Iraq, he said, is "perfectly situated for looking at all over different parts of the troubled Middle East." "We're going to keep watching and we're going to keep seeing and if there's trouble, if somebody is looking to do nuclear weapons or other things, we're going to know it before they do," he said. In Afghanistan, Trump said he would leave behind intelligence elements -- "and if I see nests forming, I'll do something about it." "We got to get out of these endless wars and bring our folks back home," he said at another point. "Now, that doesn't mean we're not going to be watching with intelligence. We're going to be watching, and watching closely."
US lawmakers nominate jailed Uighur scholar for Nobel peace prize Washington (AFP) Jan 30, 2019 US lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle said Wednesday they have nominated jailed Uighur scholar Ilham Tohti - sentenced to life in prison for "separatism" - for the Nobel peace prize. Senators Marco Rubio, a Republican, and Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, both signed the nomination letter, which came from the bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China. "We believe there is no one more deserving of the Committee's recognition in 2019 than Profe ... read more
|
|||||||||||||
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
Google
