French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Thursday that he believed the safety of Syrian Kurdish forces should be ensured at an international level in light of Washington's decision to withdraw US troops from Syria
PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th January, 2019) French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Thursday that he believed the safety of Syrian Kurdish forces should be ensured at an international level in light of Washington's decision to withdraw US troops from Syria.
In mid-December, US President Donald Trump announced that the roughly 2,000 US troops in Syria would be pulled out since the Islamic State (IS, outlawed in Russia) terrorist group had been defeated.
"This is a serious decision as it puts Kurds and their Arab allies � the Syrian Democratic Forces � in a difficult situation. They have contributed greatly to the fight against IS, and now they are weakened. This is why it is necessary to protect the safety of Kurds at an international level," Le Drian said in an interview with French broadcaster CNews.
The foreign minister praised Syrian Kurds' engagement in the counterterrorism fight, qualifying them as "the best allies."
"And the fact that US President Trump has announced the US troop withdrawal in a rough manner remains incomprehensible," Le Drian said, recalling that France had learned of the decision via Twitter.
Le Drian also announced that he would leave for Iraq in several days to meet local leadership.
According to US claims, it is Turkey that Kurds need protection from after troops leave.
Turkey and the United States have had tense relations in recent years, in part due to Ankara's concerns over US support for the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), viewed by the Turkish authorities as an affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), listed as a terrorist organization in Turkey. Ankara has also repeatedly accused Washington of failing to fulfill its promises regarding the withdrawal of the YPG from Syria's Manbij.
