U.S.' military withdrawal prompts mixed reactions

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Europe

U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw the country's military from Syria, as well as reduce forces in Afghanistan, has led to different reactions from countries in the region.

U.S. senator calls for hearings on troops in Syria, Afghanistan

Netanyahu seeks to calm Israeli concerns

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought on Sunday to calm domestic concerns over Trump's decision to pull out from Syria, saying his country will still act against Iran there.

"The decision to remove the 2,000 U.S. soldiers from Syria won't change our consistent policy," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting.

"We will continue to act against Iran's attempt to establish a military presence in Syria, and if the need arises, we will even expand our activities there," Netanyahu said.

He added that he wanted to "calm those concerned."

He also stressed that Israel's cooperation with the U.S. continues full-force, and takes place in many fields such as operational, intelligence, and security fields.

Turkey has chance to attack U.S.-backed Kurds

The withdrawal abruptly ends American influence in the war-ravaged country and gives Turkey an opening to attack U.S.-backed Kurds in Syria, reports said.

Residents and fighters in territory held by pro-Turkish rebels in northern Syria cautiously welcomed Washington's decision to pull out troops, viewing it as a chance to push further into Kurdish territory.

Even before Trump shocked allies by announcing the pullout on Wednesday, Turkey had already upped its threats of a new offensive against Syria's Kurds.

But reports also said that not everyone in the Turkish-backed rebel zone sees the U.S. withdrawal as an unadulterated positive.

Some residents believe the void left by the planned U.S. departure could see Syria's military reclaim yet more ground, rather than the Turks extending their own sphere of influence.

Afghan leader replaces top security chiefs

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday replaced two of the country's top security chiefs with staunch anti-Taliban officials, in a major shake-up days after Trump's decision to slash troop numbers in the country.

Amrullah Saleh and Assadullah Khaled, both former heads of the Afghan intelligence agency, have been appointed to the critical posts of interior minister and defense minister, respectively, a presidential decree said.

The move caps a tumultuous few days for Afghanistan after an American official told AFP late last week that Trump had decided to pull out "roughly half" of the 14,000 U.S. forces in the country.

The unexpected move stunned and dismayed foreign diplomats and Afghan officials in Kabul who are intensifying a push to end the 17-year conflict with the Taliban.

While the Taliban has not issued a formal statement on Trump's plan, a senior commander told AFP the group was "more than happy."

Trump's decision apparently came Tuesday as U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad met with the Taliban in Abu Dhabi, part of efforts to bring the militants to the negotiating table with Kabul.

(With inputs from AFP)