Timeline of events following Trump's announcement of Syria pullout, as truce nears end

Record ID: 1438115

  • Title: Timeline of events following Trump's announcement of Syria pullout, as truce nears end
  • Date: 22nd October 2019
  • Summary: U.S. troops cross into Iraq as part of withdrawal from Syria DOHUK, IRAQ (OCTOBER 21, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF U.S. MILITARY VEHICLES DRIVING IN DOHUK PROVINCE IN NORTHERN IRAQ TOWARDS U.S. BASE
  • Embargoed: 5th November 2019 01:14
  • Keywords: Donald Trump US forces Syria Turkey Kurdistan
  • Location: VARIOUS
  • City: VARIOUS
  • Country: Syria
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Military Conflicts
  • Reuters ID: LVA01BB26HHDZ
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS GRAPHIC IMAGES IN SHOTS 58-65
    Turkey agreed on Thursday (October 17) to pause its offensive in Syria for five days to let Kurdish forces withdraw from a "safe zone" Ankara had sought to capture, in a deal hailed by the Trump administration and cast by Turkey as a complete victory. That deadline runs out later today (Tuesday).
    The truce was announced by U.S. Vice President Mike Pence after talks in Ankara with Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan, and was praised by President Donald Trump, who said it would save "millions of lives".
    But if implemented it would achieve all the main objectives Turkey announced when it launched its assault on Oct. 9: control of a strip of Syria more than 30 km (20 miles) deep, with the Kurdish militia, once U.S. allies, obliged to pull out.
    It was also unclear if the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) would fully comply with the agreement, which would leave Turkish forces in charge of a swathe of territory that the Kurds once held with U.S. military support.
    Republican and Democratic senators accused Trump of having betrayed the Kurdish allies who were vital in fighting Islamic State militants, of brushing aside the humanitarian costs of Turkey's invasion and of being outwitted by Ankara.
    U.S. senators who have criticized the Trump administration for failing to prevent the Turkish assault in the first place said they would press ahead with legislation to impose sanctions against Turkey despite the ceasefire announcement.
    A Turkish official told Reuters that Ankara got "exactly what we wanted" from the talks with the United States. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu described it as a pause, solely to allow the Kurdish fighters to withdraw.
    Kurdish fighters would be forced to give up their heavy weapons and their positions would be destroyed, Cavusoglu said. He declined to call the agreement a "ceasefire", saying ceasefires could be agreed only by legitimate sides, and not by a Kurdish militia that Turkey considers a terrorist group.
    Washington and Ankara will cooperate to handle Islamic State (IS) fighters and their families held in prisons and camps, a joint statement said, addressing concerns that the militant group might reconstitute and again attack Western targets.
    The Turkish assault began on Oct. 9 after Trump moved U.S. troops out of the way after an Oct. 6 phone call with Erdogan. Trump announced sanctions on Turkey on Monday, after the assault began, but critics said these were too little, too late.
    Pence said the sanctions would be lifted once the ceasefire became permanent.
    If successful, the deal could smooth over a major rift between Washington and Turkey, the only Muslim NATO ally.
    But the U.S. withdrawal also leaves U.S. adversaries Russia and Iran in a far stronger position in Syria. The Kurds responded to the U.S. withdrawal by effectively switching allegiances and inviting Syrian government forces, backed by Moscow and Tehran, into towns and cities in areas they control.
    (Production: Bushra Shakhshir/ Polly Rider)
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