Instead of Warmongering, Trump Should Throw Turkey Out of NATO
Ankara is long past being an alliance member in good standing. And why are we on the hook for so many eastern nations anyway?
President Donald Trump has made a horrid hash of American foreign policy. Consider the debacle in Syria.
For a year, Trump said he wanted to withdraw American personnel, but failed to act under pressure from his own aides, who convinced the Syrian Kurds to trust Washington to stay. The Kurds’ discussions on reuniting with the Damascus government—which could have taken control of the border, keeping Turkish forces at bay—lapsed. Then the president abruptly announced America’s departure, triggering an almost immediate Turkish invasion. U.S. forces made a rushed exit and the Kurds desperately invited in the Syrian military.
Next the president denounced Ankara for doing what it had long planned to do, threatening to “totally destroy and obliterate the economy of Turkey.” Vice President Mike Pence insisted, “The United States of America simply is not going to tolerate Turkey’s invasion in Syria any further.” The administration announced a mix of economic and personal sanctions, while U.S. legislators proposed additional, harsher measures. Defense Secretary Mark Esper urged NATO members to take “diplomatic and economic measures” against Turkey.
Then came another policy pirouette, with the administration abandoning its hardline position and negotiating a ceasefire that gave Erdogan most everything he desired. European governments squabbled with NATO’s secretary-general over how to treat fellow member Ankara, which was undermining their objectives in Syria. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo upped the ante, seeming to suggest that Washington might attack Turkey in response to the latter’s conquest. Although the administration prefers peace, Pompeo said, “in the event that kinetic action or military action is needed, you should know that President Trump is fully prepared to undertake that action.”
Συνέχεια ανάγνωσης εδώ:
