U.S. Ending Funding for Syria Recovery Projects, Shifting Burden to Other Nations
U.S. Ending Funding for Syria Recovery Projects, Shifting Burden to Other Nations by Tracy Wilkinson – Los Angeles Times
Making good on President Trump’s stated desire to reduce the U.S. role in Syria, the State Department announced Friday it was eliminating $230 million in funding for “stabilization” projects in the war-ravaged country.
The slack will be made up by donations from other countries who have agreed to provide $300 million, State Department officials told reporters. One-third of that money will come from Saudi Arabia.
“Working with Congress, the State Department will redirect these funds [the $230 million] to support other key foreign policy priorities,” spokeswoman Heather Nauert said.
She said the decision “does not represent any lessening of U.S. commitment to our strategic goals in Syria.”
The Trump administration long ago shifted U.S. goals in Syria away from removing President Bashar Assad and ending the civil war to a more limited, concerted fight against the militant group Islamic State, which had taken over large parts of the country and neighboring Iraq…