The American political leadership may not have been able to connect the dots on a withdrawal in Syria, but it’s really quite simple: 1) Americans step aside 2) Turks swarm across the border and attack Kurds 3) Kurds cut a deal with Assad and the Russians for protection 4) Assad gets his oil back, because it’s all in Kurdish-controlled territory in the northeast It renders sanctions rather null and void. It empowers Assad exponentially because if there’s one thing he’s desperate for its oil. It gives the last remaining chunk of territory back to Assad, with the exception of Idlib. Now, conflicting reports are emerging about whether the Americans are actually going to leave Syria. It’s occurred to Trump, no doubt with some prompting, that an abrupt exit will simply give Assad all of his oil back. On Thursday, reports citing an anonymous “military official in Damascus” began to […]