Consequences of Abandoning Our Kurdish Allies

Floor Speech

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Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in great sadness and profound concern over President Trump's inexplicable abandonment of our Kurdish allies in Syria who sacrificed more than 11,000 of their sons and daughters in our joint fight against ISIS.

The President's impulsive and abrupt decision not only betrays our allies, but it betrays our values. It immediately compromises our national security, dramatically undermines American credibility, and will have negative strategic implications for generations to come.

It is not just me saying this. These are the words of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell: ``Withdrawing U.S. forces from Syria is a grave strategic mistake. It will leave the American people and homeland less safe, embolden our enemies, and weaken important alliances.''

While we should all welcome the announced 5-day pause in the Turkish assault, we should not be celebrating. Turkey has not recognized the cease-fire but, rather, just a pause in fighting. Reports from the area indicate that Turkish-affiliated forces are still attacking, and the pause is scheduled to end tomorrow. We can likely expect the carnage to then resume with a new ferocity.

Regarding the deal with Turkey, The Wall Street Journal this morning notes: ``Critics have said the agreement was a wholesale concession to Ankara, giving it control of an area in Syria it has coveted for years and freeing it from U.S. sanctions in return for pausing an offensive it had no international backing for. While President Trump hailed the pact as a diplomatic victory, U.S.-allied Kurds have likened it to a surrender on their part.''

Unsurprisingly, our Kurdish allies have now aligned their forces with Assad's army. Assad has, thus, instantly made significant territorial gains in just a few days, effectively controlling lands that the U.S. and allied forces have spent years seeking to defend.

So, let's review.

In the weeks following the President's decision to walk away from our allies, Turkish forces and allied fighters, many of which are Islamic extremists, have crossed the border into Syria.

U.S. forces have abandoned forward operating bases and then sent U.S. planes to destroy those bases. But before those bases could be destroyed, celebrating Russian troops posted selfies in some of these former American strongholds.

Turkey is not just targeting Kurdish forces, they are attacking entire towns, and civilians are literally being murdered in the streets.

The expansion of control by Russian and Syrian forces is not just a win for those countries in Syria but also threatens our allies in the region--in particular, Israel.

Iran's sense of emboldenment will likely lead it to expand programs to deliver advanced weapons to Hezbollah, increasing the already significant threat to Israel--only now from Syria as well as Lebanon.

As already noted, Assad has consolidated his power over virtually all of Syria at no political or military cost.

Finally, many ISIS prisoners have escaped to join the fight, and thousands more are at risk of release, giving ISIS a greater ability to reorganize.

One more thing: Today, there are reports that President Erdogan now wants Turkey to acquire nuclear weapons. The last thing this region needs is a nuclear arms race.

Here is the bottom line. Last Thursday, the American Vice President and Secretary of State stood at a podium and announced the administration's effective capitulation and surrender. Turkey will complete its ethnic cleansing, and the U.S. will lift all sanctions.

Assad has full control in Syria, under the tutelage of his Russian and Iranian masters.

Turkey, Syria, Russia, and Iran are the winners. The Kurds are, once more, on the losing end.

The United States, under President Trump, is sadly diminished--so much so that Syrians are throwing rotten food at retreating U.S. troops.

The administration's policies are tragic for reasons beyond the human suffering it has unleashed. They weaken our national security, undermine our fight against terrorism, and diminish American credibility.

We are so much better than this.

I call on my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to speak out and condemn the actions of this administration. Congress must pass sanctions on Turkey and seek to compel Erdogan to stop Turkey's assault on the Kurds. We must compel this administration to live up to our Nation's values, to stand by our allies, and to confront our enemies.

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