After more than two weeks of contradictory statements regarding when he would pull American troops from Syria, the Pentagon has been left guessing. U.S. military commanders don’t know what strategy to pursue, Administration officials told TIME. Should they intensify operations on the remaining ISIS fighters holed up in a stretch of desert near the Iraq-Syria border? Should they devise a logistics plan to move forces, weaponry, and equipment to nearby military bases outside the country? They’re not sure, so they’re pursuing both. “It’s honestly a mess right now,” one official told TIME. “The back and forth is painful.”
Trump’s latest pronouncement, Monday on Twitter, suggested that the U.S. military mission in the war-torn country was open-ended. “We will be leaving at a proper pace while at the same time continuing to fight ISIS and doing all else that is prudent and necessary!” he wrote.
But the announcement was the latest in a series of dizzying statements made by senior Administration officials since Trump abruptly announced on Dec. 19 that all 2,000 ground troops currently stationed in Syria would be immediately coming home. Since then, the Administration has whipsawed to say that it would continue to maintain the U.S. presence across half-dozen military bases in the country without a definitive timeline. “There are objectives that we want to accomplish that condition the withdrawal,” National Security Adviser John Bolton told reporters in Jerusalem, where he went to allay concerns over the pull-out. “The timetable flows from the policy decisions that we need to implement.”
Trump’s initial impromptu decision, hastily made during a Dec. 14 phone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has become the latest example of Trump’s reliably inconsistent presidency. From the start of his Administration, Trump has opted to improvise, calculate risk and quickly make a decision rather than stick to a detailed script provided by his aides. The President’s strategy is at odds with many of his predecessors, who would rely upon intelligence assessments, talking points and policies pre-negotiated by staff.
The Brief Newsletter
Sign up to receive the top stories you need to know right now. View Sample
Typically, presidential phone calls and meetings with foreign leaders are highly choreographed events with clear parameters of what will be — and perhaps more importantly, what won’t be — discussed. Dozens of staffers from the White House National Security Council work in advance for weeks, or months, to ensure that America’s interests are furthered through conversations with foreign leaders.
During the call with Erdogan, for instance, Trump was advised to dissuade the Turkish leader from pushing his forces deeper into northern Syria. But when Erdogan began asking…
