Syria Pullout Likely To Begin In Weeks: US Commander

Washington: The withdrawal of US troops from Syria will likely begin within weeks, the Pentagon commander in charge of American forces in the Middle East has said.

General Joseph Votel, the chief commander of the US Central Command, made the remarks while speaking to the media on a military aeroplane heading to the region on Sunday.

“Probably weeks. But again, it will all be driven by the situation on the ground,” he was quoted by The New York Times as saying. “In terms of the withdrawal ... I think we’re right on track with where we wanted to be.”

“Moving people is easier than moving equipment and so what we're trying to do right now is again (to) kind of clear out those materials, that equipment, that we do not need,” he said, adding that the exact timing of the troop withdrawal was still not settled.

Votel told the media that the overall US troops’ number in Iraq was “going to remain more or less steady”.

CNN reported that Votel, who was retiring, was on a two-week “farewell tour.” He was also reportedly going to meet key foreign military and government leaders in the region “to thank them for their support for the US-led coalition” and “find ways to reassure Syrian Democratic Forces’ commanders that the US was not abandoning them”.

The US-led multinational coalition has been engaged in an operation to drive out the Islamic State (IS) militants from their last stronghold in the eastern Euphrates region in eastern Syria. (IANS)

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