Eli Lake, Columnist

In Syria, the Damage to America Is Already Done

Trump’s impetuous policymaking is hurting U.S. credibility in the Mideast and around the world.

October 8, 2019 at 6:30 PM UTC

Eli Lake is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering national security and foreign policy. He was the senior national security correspondent for the Daily Beast and covered national security and intelligence for the Washington Times, the New York Sun and UPI.

Turkish-backed Syrian rebel fighters on the move.
Photographer: NAZEER AL-KHATIB/AFP

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President Donald Trump’s high-wire act on Syria continues. Even if he manages to climb down without harming the U.S. fight against Islamic State, which is unlikely, he has already done long-lasting damage to broader U.S. interests.

To review: On Monday, Trump declared he was withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria but said he would hold Turkey accountable if it attacked a safe zone established for Kurdish forces. In another series of tweets on Tuesday morning, the president repeated those goals and reiterated those warnings — and then, for good measure, invited Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Washington.