‘No change’ to US policy in Syria: CENTCOM

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) affirmed on Thursday that there is “no change” to its policy in Syria, reiterating its commitment to the Kurdish forces in the country and the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS) amid a recent flare-up in tension with Turkey. 

Dana Stroul, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East, and Major General Matt McFarlane, commander of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve, held a virtual roundtable where they answered reporters’ questions. 

Stroul and McFarlane reiterated the US’ commitment to “promoting security and stability in the region and specifically to maintaining force presence in Iraq and Syria.”

Kurds in Syria have been Washington’s main allies on the ground in the fight against ISIS since the group seized control of swathes of land in Syria and Iraq in 2014. The US has provided ammunition and military support to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

“The SDF are the only combat credible, capable, and willing partner we have in northeast Syria willing to partner with us on a daily basis to continue the fight against ISIS,” CENTCOM said in its initial statement kicking off the roundtable. 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been threatening to launch a ground incursion to strike down the Kurdish forces in northeast Syria who it considers as a threat to Turkish national security. 

The operations launched by Turkey in the area have led to a barrage of dozens of drones and airstrikes targeting the SDF, which presents a danger to US personnel as they maintain a presence in the proximity of the area. 

“We remain committed to the SDF, in terms of continuing to express our desire for all parties to deescalate the situation in the north,” McFarlane said, echoing similar remarks by US officials since the recent escalation in tension. 

“Any sort of large scale incursion that would detract from our core focus on the defeat -- the sustainable defeat of ISIS is not a risk that we can afford to take at this point in time,” he added. 

ISIS rose to power across swathes of Syria and Iraq in 2014 but it was territorially defeated five years later. Despite the group being devoid of any territorial control, it continues to pose security risks through kidnappings, hit-and-run attacks, and bombings in the both countries.

The SDF was the primary force that defeated ISIS in Syria in 2019, reclaiming swathes of territory from the terror group as their backbone - the People’s Protection Units (YPG) - received worldwide recognition for their successful resistance to ISIS as the terror group pounded on the northern Syrian Kurdish city of Kobane in 2014. Ankara views the YPG as an offshoot of the PKK which has waged a decades-long insurgency fighting for increased rights for Kurds in Turkey.