Congressman Stephen Lynch (D-MA) says he is “fearful” after meeting with leaders in Afghanistan and Jordan over the weekend, following President Donald Trump’s decision to pull U.S. troops out of northern Syria.
“I am fearful of what this means for Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, for Turkey and that whole region,” Lynch said in an interview Tuesday. “You've got all these countries, and a number of them have been good allies, and now a number of them are in a very fragile position.”
Lynch says Afghan leaders repeatedly expressed concern that Trump's move in Syria was a sign of things to come in Afghanistan.
“Government officials in Afghanistan were concerned about whether or not this announced drawdown was a precursor to a larger and more precipitous drawdown of troops in Afghanistan,” he said. “That was raised across the board by all of the Afghan national officials that we met with.”
Lynch, chairman of the congressional oversight and reform subcommittee on national security, joined a bipartisan delegation in Jordan and Afghanistan led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Lynch met with King Abdullah of Jordan, President Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan, and chief executives, government officials and military leaders from both nations.
Lynch says Afghan leaders fear that ongoing negotiations with the Taliban could have major civil rights implications — as peace talks continue between the U.S. and the Taliban, leaders are concerned that protections for women and minorities may be lost as a bargaining chip on the negotiation table.
“[Afghan leaders are] worried that any compromise to allow the Taliban to take part in the government would necessarily concede the rights that women have earned in the fairly recent Afghan constitution,” Lynch said.
Defense officials say the Pentagon has started drawing up plans for an abrupt withdrawal of troops in Afghanistan, in case Trump orders an immediate withdrawal, as he did in Syria.
Earlier this month, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Trump had ordered the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria — an announcement that came as a surprise to many congressional leaders and some in Trump’s own administration.
This decision paved the way for Turkey to lead a military offensive against Kurdish forces that had been working with U.S. military forces to fight ISIS.
“Seemingly without a wider conversation with congressional leadership or in some cases with his own administration, the president just decided, you know, on a whim, I guess, to pull those troops out,” Lynch said. “This president is difficult to understand sometimes.”
Lynch joined hundreds of his colleagues in a 364-60 House vote on a resolution condemning Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from northern Syria. Lynch says that helped to communicate a sense of support for leaders in Afghanistan and Jordan.
“We talked frankly about that, that we had all voted basically to condemn the president's action, and that was quite clear,” Lynch said. “So they know that there is a difference of opinion about the wisdom of that decision.”
Lynch will hold a hearing Wednesday on Trump’s decision to withdraw military forces from Syria and the resulting consequences for U.S. national security. According to a press release from Lynch’s office, the hearing will also address the humanitarian crisis following Turkey’s invasion of northern Syria.
