U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday said he did not want to leave any American troops in Syria, but that U.S. forces leaving the country now would deploy elsewhere before eventually returning to the United States.

Trump, speaking at a meeting of his Cabinet at the White House, also said it appeared a five-day pause negotiated last week in the Turkish offensive against U.S.-allied Kurdish-led fighters in northern Syria was holding despite some skirmishes, and that it could possibly go beyond Tuesday's expiration.

"I'm sure if we needed a little extension that would be happening," he told reporters at the meeting.

Turkey began its cross-border operation following Trump's decision two weeks ago to withdraw U.S. troops from the area. U.S officials said that those troops were expected to be repositioned in the region. Some of them could go to Iraq.

Trump orders remaining US forces to withdraw from northeast Syria

U.S. troops to be repositioned into western Iraq

A small number of U.S. troops would stay "in a little different section to secure the oil," as well as in "a totally different section of Syria near Jordan and close to Israel," Trump said on Monday.

"That's a totally different mindset," Trump said, adding: "Other than that, there's no reason" for U.S. troops to remain. "They're going to be sent initially to different parts," he added. "Ultimately, we're bringing them home."

The American withdrawal has been criticized by U.S. lawmakers, including some of Trump's fellow Republicans, as a betrayal of Kurdish allies who for years have helped the United States fight the ISIL. It is also a decision that allowed Turkey to launch an offensive against the SDF which for years was a U.S. ally battling Islamic State.

More than 100 vehicles crossed the border into Iraq early on Monday from the northeast tip of Syria, where Turkey agreed to pause its offensive for five days under a deal with Washington.

The truce expires late on Tuesday, just after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is set to discuss next steps in the region at a meeting in Russia with President Vladimir Putin.

German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer on Monday suggested the creation of a security zone in northern Syria to protect displaced civilians and ensure that the fight continues against Islamic State (ISIL) militia.

"My suggestion is that we set up an internationally controlled security zone involving Turkey and Russia," Kramp-Karrenbauer, also party leader of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, told Deutsche Welle in an interview.

The step should also stabilize the region so that civilians could rebuild and refugees could return on a voluntary basis, Kramp-Karrenbauer said.

Kramp-Karrenbauer added she had liaised closely with Merkel regarding the idea of a security zone in northern Syria and that she had informed Germany's most important allies about the proposal.

It is the first time that the German government has proposed a military mission in the Middle East. If supported by Turkey and Russia, Berlin would be expected to send soldiers to Syria as part of the mission.