A decision that could upend American policy in the Middle East, U.S. President Donald Trump overriding his top national security aides, blindsided U.S. ground commanders, and stunned lawmakers and allies with his order on Wednesday for U.S. troops to leave Syria.
The result, said current and former officials and people briefed on the decision, will empower Russia and Iran and leave unfinished the goal of erasing the risk that Islamic State, or ISIS, which has lost all but a sliver territory, could rebuild.
The move, which carries echoes of President Trump’s repudiation of the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris climate change accord, is in keeping with his America First philosophy and the pledge he made to end U.S. military involvement.
