President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw all U.S. diplomats and military forces from Syria is a strategic mistake. American troops were never going to stay in Syria indefinitely, but a smart, phased approach could have better-protected allies and partners and maintained U.S. credibility. This is not that smart approach. In fact, all the early indications are that this was a hasty decision taken without proper coordination with U.S. allies in the counter-ISIS coalition, with little warning to reliable U.S. partners fighting and dying on the ground, and without heed to the advice of U.S. diplomats, intelligence analysts or the military.
The above excerpt was originally published in The National Interest.
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