Damascus Opposes US Plan To Leave Troops In Syria - Deputy Defense Minister

Damascus opposes US intention to leave some of its military in Syria and will consider it as an act of aggression, Syrian Deputy Defense Minister Mahmoud Shava said Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th April, 2019) Damascus opposes US intention to leave some of its military in Syria and will consider it as an act of aggression, Syrian Deputy Defense Minister Mahmoud Shava said Wednesday.

"Syria opposes aggressive US statements on intentions to leave a part of its troops on the Syrian territory under any pretext," the official said at the eighth Moscow Conference on International Security.

The deputy defense minister reiterated that Damascus viewed any foreign military presence on Syria's soil without the permission of the government as "obvious aggression."

According to Shava, the United States continues to use the White Helmets non-governmental organization in Syria for its own purposes.

"They are implementing their expansionist plans using the so-called White Helmets and other terrorist organizations in order to continue crimes against the Syrian people," Shava added.

US President Donald Trump announced in December that he had decided to withdraw troops from Syria promising to bring about 2,000 US servicemen back home.

The reason for the move, he explained, was the defeat of the Islamic State terrorist group (outlawed in Russia) in Syria. However, no exact deadline for the return of troops has been revealed by US officials yet.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in February that the United States would leave a small peacekeeping group of about 200 personnel in Syria "for a period of time." According to media reports, this number has already risen to 400, with 200 troops to be placed in northeast Syria and the other 200 at At-Tanf base in southern Syria.

The White Helmets non-governmental organization claims to be a group of volunteer rescue workers, who help to prepare Syrians for attacks and carry out rescue operations. However, the group has faced severe criticism on the part of both Syria itself and Russia, which accuse the organization of supporting terrorists and staging provocations involving chemical weapons, aimed at justifying potential foreign interventions in Syria.