The US is doubling down in Syria - but officials won't say why

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The US is doubling down in Syria - but officials won't say why

Syrian Democratic Forces SDF Arab Kurdish Fighters Raqqa Syria

AP Photo/Hussein Malla

Arab and Kurdish fighters with the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), pose for a picture as they prepare to move to the front line to battle against the Islamic State militants, in Raqqa, northeast Syria on July 22, 2017.

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  • The US-led coalition has set up a Kurdish-dominated "Border Security Force" in Syria.
  • The move has enraged Russia, Iran, the Syrian regime, and especially Turkey.
  • Spokespersons at the Pentagon and Operation Inherent Resolve have not yet been able to explain why it set up such a force.


The US-led coalition in Syria acknowledged over the weekend that it's training a Kurdish-dominated "Border Security Force" to operate in northern and eastern parts of Syria.

The move has enraged Russia, Turkey, Iran, and the Syrian regime.

It has especially angered Ankara, which views Kurdish YPG as a terrorist organization - an extension of the Kurdish PKK that has waged an insurgency in Turkey for decades.

Business Insider reached out to the Defense Department and Operation Inherent Resolve, but spokespersons at both did not comment on why the coalition has created the border force.

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While acknowledging that the US-led coalition does not have an official explanation yet, Defense Department spokesman Eric Pahon told Business Insider that the US has "maintained full accountability and transparency with the Turkish government" and "are keenly aware of the security concerns of our coalition partner Turkey."

"We want to reassure the people and government of Turkey that the US is committed to preventing additional security risks and protecting our NATO ally," Pahon said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vowed on Monday to "strangle it before it's even born," and the Guardian reported on Tuesday that Turkish troops and tanks on the border with Syria were poised to strike the Border Security Force.

Tayyip Erdogan Turkey President

REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attends a news conference after meeting with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja, Nigeria March 2, 2016.

It's been reported that the BSF will be about 30,000-strong, and deploy to Syria's northern border with Turkey, the southeastern border with Iraq and along the Euphrates River, which acts as a border between the US-backed SDF and Syrian regime and Russian forces.

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"They will be providing border security through professionally securing checkpoints and conducting counter-IED operations," the coalition told Reuters, adding that coalition and SDF forces were still engaging remaining ISIS fighters in Deir al-Zor province.

The BSF will be largely made up of SDF veterans, most of whom are Kurdish YPG fresh off their fight against ISIS.

The coalition appears to be in a quagmire, neither wanting to upset Turkey over its continued support for the Kurdish YPG, nor wanting to leave the YPG high and dry to Turkish forces after supporting them against ISIS.