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The United States has begun reducing its military presence in Syria with plans to eventually maintain only one base in the country, U.S. Ambassador to Türkiye and also the U.S. Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack announced.
"We've gone from eight bases to five to three. We'll eventually go to one," Barrack said in an interview with Türkiye's NTV television on Monday.
In a separate interview with Syria TV, U.S. Ambassador to Ankara and Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack emphasized that the primary mission against Daesh has been largely accomplished.
"President Donald Trump deployed our army in Syria with a single objective, the fight against Daesh. Our forces have completed 99% of this mission with great success," Barrack stated.
The U.S. diplomat stressed that America's military and political presence in Syria is fundamentally aimed at ensuring the security of the regional population and eliminating terrorist threats.
Barrack noted that under President Trump's administration, the U.S. military has concentrated on a single mission in Syria.
"President Trump deployed our army in Syria with a single objective, the fight against Daesh. Our forces have completed 99% of this mission with great success," the envoy said.
The ambassador indicated that President Trump's goal is not to govern Syria but to strengthen the existing government, using an unusual analogy: "We can think of it this way, we want to be sweet on this stage. Baklava."
Addressing the negotiation process between Syria and Israel, Barrack emphasized that the relationship between Israel and the United States is not based on religion but is strategic and security-focused.
"The US role here is simply to initiate dialogue. We want peace here," Barrack stated.
The envoy suggested that the first step toward peace between Syria and Israel could be a non-aggression agreement, followed by mutual border agreements.
The announcement of reducing U.S. military installations from eight bases to eventually one represents a significant shift in America's military footprint in Syria.
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