What’s behind the US plan to establish a new military base in Iraq?

While US President Donald Trump has frequently talked about the necessity of reducing American military commitments in the Middle East, new reports indicate that the US military is actively establishing new military bases in Iraq, along the border with Syria.

کد خبر: ۸۱۶۴۰۱

تاریخ: ۲۳ تير ۱۳۹۷ - ۱۵:۳۰

Tabnak – While US President Donald Trump has frequently talked about the necessity of reducing American military commitments in the Middle East, new reports indicate that the US military is actively establishing new military bases in Iraq, along the border with Syria.

The Arabic-language al-Maloumeh news website quoted Iraqi sources as saying that the US army has decided to construct a military base in Western Al-Anbar province of Iraq near the border with Syria,

An Iraqi source told al-Maloumeh that the US decision comes while the US has already several military bases in different parts of the Western Desert of Al-Anbar province. "The US intends to set up a military base equipped with state-of-the-art military hardware and systems," he added.

The source reiterated that the US troops are present in Western al-Anbar along Iraq-Syria border in addition to their presence at the train station East of al-Qaem city. The news comes as the main incentive of the US forces for setting up the military base is not clear.

In a relevant development in late June, a prominent Russian military analyst revealed that "the US is training terrorists in 19 military bases in Syria" in pursuit of its military and political objectives in the country.

Vladimir Kozin, a military expert at Moscow State Institute of International Relations, was quoted by the Arabic website of RT as saying that the US has 19 bases in Syria to train the terrorists.

He added that the weapons, ammunition, fuel and foodstuff needed in these centers are provided by 22 US military bases outside Syria.

Kozin said that the American forces train the terrorists at al-Tanf base in Syria's Badiyeh region in the South, adding that the US army has closed the airspace of this region in a radius of 50km without any agreement with the Damascus government.

He described Washington's military and technical support for terrorist groups as a violation of the UN Charter and agreements to decrease tensions in Syria, and said the US supports the terrorists to maintain its influence on the political and military situation of the country.

Also in June, media sources reported that the US occupying forces were attempting to open different ways to transfer terrorists between al-Tanf, Deir Ezzur and Homs by contacting the tribes in Eastern Syria for cooperation.

The Arabic website of Sputnik news agency quoted tribal sources in Eastern Syria as saying that the US forces transfer the ISIL terrorists from the desert region bordering Iraq to al-Tanf through al-Sukhneh in Homs.

Meantime, one of the prominent tribal leaders in Eastern Syria revealed that Mohannad al-Tala, a US proxy and commander of the so-called New Syrian Forces group in the US base in al-Tanf, has contacted the Syrian tribes, calling on them to open a passage for the terrorists to leave al-Tanf for Deir Ezzur to reach al-Omar oil field.

He added that the US forces fear uprisings by the people in Eastern Syria, noting that one of their goals to approach the tribes is to keep deployment in the region as Washington attempts to win the cooperation of the tribes in Manbij, Hasaka and Deir Ezzur have all failed.

Meantime, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has freed its militant inmates and sent them to the battlefield to attack al-Tanf-Sukhneh road in Homs and open a passageway and the Jordan road to al-Tanf.

The US forces had in the past 10 days been busy with transferring the ISIL terrorists with at least 10 armored trucks and heavy artillery to attack Albu Kamal from Abu Hameseh in Hasaka.