Democratic Presidential Candidate Joe Biden appeared to call for returning U.S. military troops to Syria in response to a question from CNN’s Anderson Cooper during Thursday night’s debate.
Cooper started off by asking Biden whether he supported President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw troops from Syria, abandoning the Kurds, our long-time allies in the region. Biden said he did not support the move and pivoted to an additional 1,000 troops who he said were in retreat in the middle east “under fire.” When Cooper pressed for a yes-or-no answer, Biden appeared to say he would redeploy troops. (RELATED: ABC News Issues Correction After Running Fake Footage Of Syrian Conflict)
“I would want those 1,000 troops to be protected by air cover, and make it clear they’re not going anywhere,” Biden said. “And work my way back toward what needs to be done: protecting those Kurds. They lost lives, and what [Trump] has done is shameful.” (RELATED: Rand Paul Reveals Reason Trump’s Syria Plan Might Be Working)
President Donald Trump announced plans to withdraw us soldiers from the region in early October. Turkish forces invaded the region afterward and the Kurds formed and alliance with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. The move sparked criticism from both the right and left, with President Trump’s long-time ally Sen. Lindsay Graham calling it an “impulsive decision.”
Hope and expect sanctions against Turkey – if necessary – would be veto-proof.
This decision to abandon our Kurdish allies and turn Syria over to Russia, Iran, & Turkey will put every radical Islamist on steroids. Shot in the arm to the bad guys. Devastating for the good guys.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 7, 2019
“This decision to abandon our Kurdish allies and turn Syria over to Russia, Iran, & Turkey will put every radical Islamist on steroids. Shot in the arm to the bad guys. Devastating for the good guys,” he wrote on Twitter.