WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th December, 2019) The United States' decision to keep troops in northern Syria has undermined reconciliation efforts between the Kurds and the Syrian government that took place when US President Donald Trump initially ordered a pullout of forces from the area and Turkey began a military operation there, Virginia State Senator Richard Black, who met with Syrian President Bashar Assad in 2016 and 2018, told Sputnik.
"When President Trump ordered the US troop withdrawal, it immediately weakened the Kurds and forced them to begin to cooperate with their own Syrian government. Their leaders flew to Damascus and they were in a process of reconciling with the government," Black said. "In the course of this, the Kurds surrendered the important border city of Kobani and the vital crossroad city of Manbij... At this point, the conflict was well on its way towards a resolution."
