Assad: US forces in Syria are ‘invaders’
President says Washington is good at ‘creating problems’ but not finding solutions, does not rule out cooperation with Trump
Syrian President Bashar Assad on Saturday commented on US troops who recently arrived in northern Syria, telling a Chinese TV station that all foreign troops on Syrian soil without invitation or consultation with the Syrian government are considered “invaders.”
Assad scoffed at US troops’ presence, saying “They didn’t succeed anywhere they sent troops, they only create a mess. They are very good in creating problems and destroying, but they are very bad in finding solutions.”
Assad also said that while “in theory” he shares the priorities of fighting terrorism with US President Donald Trump, they have had no formal contact yet.
The Syrian leader did not rule out cooperation with the Trump administration but said it was not practical yet.
“Their raids against ISIS…happened without the cooperation or the consultation with the Syrian Army or the Syrian government which is illegal,” he said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group.
Assad said his military’s priority was to reach the Islamic State’s de-facto capital of Raqqa — toward which US-backed Kurdish-led forces are also advancing.
In the interview with Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV, Assad said another IS stronghold, Deir el-Zour, could be targeted in parallel.
He said Russia, a major ally, hopes it can bring the US and Turkey into cooperating with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria. Assad’s government views all armed opposition as terrorist groups.
“We have more hopes now regarding the American party because of the new administration,” he said.
The latest dispatch of around 200 Marines into northern Syria brings the number of US boots on the ground in Syria close to more than 700.
The Marines’ deployment, intended to back local forces in the campaign against the Islamic State group, came just days after another intervention. Dozens of Army troops, riding Stryker armored vehicles waving American flags, drove outside the Syrian town of Manbij in a mission aimed at keeping US allies Turkey and Syrian Kurds from fighting each other and focused instead on the fight against IS.
Previous troops were quietly sent by the Obama administration to work with local allies against IS; most of them were special forces and advisers, and none brought heavy weapons like artillery with them.
