Our US allies are reeling from the US news reports which have developed during the week of December 17, 2018. This was when the US Defense Secretary General James Mattis abruptly quit, right after the president arbitrarily ordered the immediate evacuation of all US troops from Syria, contrary to current foreign policy strategies and the advice of numerous US foreign policy experts. The republican President Donald J. Trump’s Defense Secretary General Mattis would never have taken this step if he didn’t have serious concerns about our president going rogue by taking unilateral actions without any serious consultation.
Then the US #1 envoy in the Middle East, Brett McGurk who has been dealing for years with the eradication of ISIS with leaders in the region, has quit abruptly as well. He had been going around advising Middle Eastern officials that the US had made decision that US military would remain in Syria to insure that ISIS did not raise its ugly head again. But then, he was left with egg on his face, as the president pulled the rug from under him without any notice.
As per NYT tweet, “The recent decision by the president came as a shock and was a complete reversal of policy that was articulated to us,” U.S. envoy Brett McGurk wrote in an email announcing his resignation.”
It’s a sad day when the US leader of the world is paying more attention to FOX TV pundits and despotic rulers before listening to the advice of his own foreign policy experts.
My hypothesis is that the Russian President Vladimir Putin Trump has been leaning on the US republican President Donald Trump for months to withdraw US troops from Syria so that Russia and Iran can control the ground.
To please Russia, President Trump came up with a plan in early December 2018 to have his team set up a phone call between both the US and Turkish presidents. Around December 14, 2018, President Trump placed a call to Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan where he created the pretext to justify his orders to evacuate all US troops from Syria, a surprise to even the Turkish leader.
This move by President Trump is viewed by foreign policy experts, as a Christmas gift to US adversaries, Russia, Iran, ISIS and the US ne’re do well ally, Turkey. Turkey now has the opportunity to attack our #1 reliable partner in the US fight against ISIS, the Kurds without any back-up support from the US military.
Iran couldn’t be more pleased. As per a 12/22/18 Reuters report, “Iran said that the U.S. military presence in Syria had been “a mistake, illogical and a source of tension”, in Tehran’s first reaction to President Donald Trump’s planned pull-out.”
In addition, this move exposes Israel to greater risk because of its arch enemy Iran’s presence in Syria, with its military possibly being deployed to its eastern border with Israel.
No sooner had President Trump delivered his announcement that the US troops’ withdrawal from Syria, when the Turkish President Erdogan and the Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu were throwing brutal verbal punches back and forth.
Here’s the rest of the story…
On December 23, 2018. the Times of Israel staff penned the following report, Amid spat, Turkey’s top diplomat calls Netanyahu a ‘cold-blooded killer’ “Latest anti-Israel speech by Turkey’s President Erdogan draws retort from Israeli PM, which in turn precipitates flurry of denunciations by Turkish officials”
Excerpts:
“In the latest round of a years-long war of words between Israel and Turkey, Ankara’s foreign minister on Sunday called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “a cold-blooded killer of modern times.”
“The occupier which kicks people lying on the ground is easily offended,” Mevlut Cavusoglu said in a Twitter post that included photos of what appear to be a dead Palestinian and a Palestinian being arrested by IDF troops.
“Netanyahu is a cold-blooded killer of modern times, responsible for massacres of thousands of innocent Palestinians, bombing children on beaches. Turkey will never stop exposing the truth,” Cavusoglu insisted.”
“Cavusoglu’s comments were part of a flurry of angry denunciations of Israel from Turkish officials, a day after an acrimonious exchange between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Netanyahu.”
“Erdogan, a staunch supporter of the Gaza-ruling terror group Hamas and long a harsh critic of Israel who regularly likens its actions toward the Palestinians to the mass Nazi murder of Jews during the Holocaust, accused Israel of assaulting innocents in a speech Saturday to young Turks at an Istanbul meeting of the Turkey Youth Foundation.”
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu
✔@MevlutCavusoglu
The occupier which kicks people lying on the ground is easily offended: @netanyahu is a cold-blooded killer of modern times, responsible for massacres of thousands of innocent Palestinians, bombing children on beaches. Turkey will never stop exposing the truth.
“Netanyahu responded with a short statement saying, “Erdogan – the occupier of northern Cyprus, whose army massacres women and children in Kurdish villages, inside and outside Turkey – should not preach to Israel.”
“The short response drew a swift round of vituperation from Turkish officials. Beside Cavusoglu, Erdogan’s spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said on Twitter: “Instead of begging President Erdoğan not to speak out the truth, Netanyahu should end the lawless occupation of Palestinian lands and the brutal oppression of Palestinian people. Bashing Erdoğan or using Kurds as a political chip will not save him from his domestic troubles.”
“Turkey’s minister in charge of EU accession talks, Omer Celik, also chimed in, saying, “Netanyahu was very disturbed by our President’s warnings for humanity, for the oppressed. He’s going to be uncomfortable, because the truth won’t stop.”
“Israel-Turkey relations have long been tense but reached a new nadir in May in the aftermath of Israel’s response to violent protests on the Gaza border that were inspired by Hamas, and in which dozens of Palestinians were killed.”
Turkey later recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv and expelled Israel’s envoys.
Israel responded in kind, with Netanyahu saying Erdogan “well understands terrorism and slaughter” and should not lecture Israel about military ethics.
“Israel expelled Turkey’s consul-general in Jerusalem, who represents Ankara to the Palestinians, while Turkey threatened to sue the Jewish state at the International Criminal Court in the Hague.”
“Despite reports about Israeli-Turkish backchannel talks trying to restore diplomatic relations, none of the envoys who were recalled have returned to their respective postings.”
“Erdogan’s latest diatribe against Israel comes just days after US President Donald Trump abruptly announced he would withdraw all American troops from Syria, a decision The Associated Press reported he made during a phone call with the Turkish leader. Trump said the roughly 2,000 US soldiers in Syria would be withdrawn as the Islamic State jihadist group had been “beaten,” a claim met with skepticism by many lawmakers and analysts.”
“Washington’s decision not only has ramifications for the Kurds, who are being trained by US forces, but also for Turkey’s actions in Syria. In the wake of the announcement, Erdogan on Friday vowed to drive out a US-backed Kurdish militia and jihadists from Syria as Kurdish forces there warned that any attack by Ankara could seriously undermine the fight against the Islamic State.”
“Trump’s declaration has been met with profound concern in Israel, with the US presence in Syria seen as a barrier to Iran’s military efforts there. Israel has repeatedly warned in recent years of Iran’s efforts to establish a military presence in Syria, where it is fighting alongside Russia and its Lebanese proxy Hezbollah on behalf of Syrian President Bashar Assad.”
“For Israel, the pullout leaves it without a staunch ally in the fight against Iran in Syria and also potentially opens the door for the Islamic Republic to create a so-called “land bridge” from Iran, through Iraq and Syria, into Lebanon and to the Mediterranean Sea. Until now, American troops have been stationed in northeastern Syria, along the Iraqi border, blocking such a corridor, through which Iran could more easily distribute advanced weapons and technology throughout the region, especially to its Lebanese client Hezbollah.”
The Times of Israel
✔@TimesofIsrael
Amid spat, Turkey’s top diplomat calls Netanyahu a ‘cold-blooded killer’ https://www.timesofisrael.com/amid-spat-turkeys-top-diplomat-calls-netanyahu-a-cold-blooded-killer/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter …
Amid spat, Turkey’s top diplomat calls Netanyahu a ‘cold-blooded killer’
Latest anti-Israel speech by Turkey’s President Erdogan draws retort from Israeli PM, which in turn precipitates flurry of denunciations by Turkish officials
timesofisrael.com
Gronda Morin 
Out of every thing you wrote in this detailed post, the following is the most disturbing —
It’s a sad day when the US leader of the world is paying more attention to FOX TV pundits and despotic rulers before listening to the advice of his own foreign policy experts.
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Dear Nan,
Those words are disturbing as they tell us that President Trump is acting solely to please his base, a minority of about 35%. This is the market that right wing media outlets cater to like FOX TV. The president’s reliance on these outlets for information, tells us where his priorities lay.
Then his catering to countries who are adverse to US interests like Russia, tells us that he is somehow beholden to these countries for his financial well-being and/ or its officials have kompromat on him. Their needs take precedence over US national security interests.
Hugs, Gronda
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Trump is a sad, seriously disturbed man who is being shoved into a corner by investigations. His past indiscretions are coming back to haunt him and he’s scared. He’s even entangled his family members in his misdeeds. We shouldn’t hold our breath waiting for the Republicans in Congress to take action. They seem to have lost their backbones and pride ages ago. 😦 — Suzanne
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Dear Suzanne,
The GOP in the US Congress will step up to the plate to honor their oath of office when they are forced to because it would mean doom, if they don’t. No, I don’t credit them with the attribute of courage.
Hugs, Gronda
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