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US troops returning to northeast Syria

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What happened: US forces have arrived back in eastern Syria, with footage showing a US convoy arriving in the region from northern Iraq, in order to reinforce positions around oil fields in the Deir ez-Zor region.

  • US Defence Secretary Mark Esper said the aim was to keep the oil fields out of Syrian, Russian, or ISIS control. He said: “we want to make sure that the SDF does have access to those resources in order to assist us with the defeat ISIS mission.”
  • In 2010 Syria was able to produce 400,000 barrels of oil per day, 0.5 per cent of total global production.
  • But ABC News reported that a Senior State Department official said the administration was “just beginning to look at the specifics of this” and downplayed a US role in seizing any oil fields.

Context: President Donald Trump has been under huge domestic pressure over his withdrawal from north eastern Syria, with commentators referring to the period as the worst week of his presidency. The killing of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has allowed him to talk up the continuing fight against ISIS and senior US officials have hinted at more operations against ISIS in cooperation with the SDF in the weeks ahead.

Looking ahead: Analysts have been expecting a response from ISIS to the death of al-Baghdadi. A return of US troops to oil fields will be important to prevent an important resource from being targeted and seized by ISIS. Pressure on President Trump is likely to ease up over the coming days and weeks, with domestic allies rallying behind him, assuming Turkey’s operation doesn’t restart.