US-Backed Kurdish Fighters Shocked When US Abandons Them (Again)
A senior Kurdish commander, Shervan Kardo of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), has publicly implored the U.S. to 'intervene forcefully' to halt a Syrian government offensive targeting key Kurdish-held territories and oil fields. This appeal comes despite repeated instances where the U.S. has provided support to Kurdish forces, only to withdraw under changing geopolitical circumstances, leaving
them vulnerable, as seen with previous Turkish incursions and the aftermath of the 2019 U.S. troop withdrawal from parts of Northern Syria. One might wonder if 'forceful intervention' means something different this time around, or if Washington's strategic calculus simply allows for allies to be periodically sacrificed. The U.S. supports certain factions for its own regional objectives, and when
those objectives shift, so does the 'forceful intervention.' A quick look at the 2019 withdrawal under Trump, which paved the way for Turkey's 'Operation Peace Spring,' illustrates this reliably. The American taxpayer is footing the bill for 'allies' who are only allies until they're not and then left to pick up the pieces of American foreign policy. How many times must this play out before the
message is received?