US Company Signs Deal for Syrian Oil

U.S.-led coalition aircraft shoots down drone over Syria

A fighter jet with the U.S.-led coalition shot down a drone in eastern Syria on Saturday after the unmanned aircraft was deemed a threat, the U.S. military said.

“Coalition aircraft successfully engaged and defeated a UAS through air to air engagement in the vicinity of Mission Support Site Green Village,” said coalition spokesperson U.S. Army Colonel Wayne Marotto.

The Pentagon last month said it was deeply concerned about attacks on U.S. personnel in Syria and Iraq after U.S. diplomats and troops were targeted in three rocket and drone attacks that wounded two American service members.

Syrian, Jordanian defense officials discuss border security

Syria’s defense minister met on Sunday with Jordan’s army chief in Amman, the Jordanian capital, after Syrian troops captured several rebel-held areas near Jordan’s border, state media reported.

The Hala Akhbar news site, which is linked to Jordan’s military, reported that the meeting between Jordanian Gen. Yousef Huneiti and Syrian Gen. Ali Ayoub was “to increase coordination in the field of border security to serve the interests of the two brotherly countries.”

The recent push by Syrian troops in the country’s south is the biggest since government forces captured wide areas along the border in 2018, including the Nassib border crossing...

Progressive foreign policy’s big week

Rep. JAMAAL BOWMAN (D-N.Y.) also proposed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would’ve required congressional approval to have U.S. troops in Syria one year after the measure became law. It failed 141-286, but the tally showed there’s strong support for ending America’s seven years of military operations there...

The White House, however, doesn't want a cap on military operations in Syria. "The United States is in Syria for the sole purpose of enabling the campaign against ISIS, which is not yet over," a National Security Council spokesperson said. "We are committed to preserving our limited presence in northeast Syria as part of a comprehensive strategy to defeat ISIS and Al-Qaida working by, with, and through the Syrian Democratic Forces and other local partners"...

US will not normalise or upgrade diplomatic ties with Syria

The United States has no plans to “normalise or upgrade” diplomatic relations with the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and also does not encourage others to do so, a US State Department spokesperson has said.

The comments came in response to questions from the Reuters news agency on whether Washington was encouraging and supporting a rapprochement between Jordan and Syria after Jordan fully reopened its main border crossing with Syria on Wednesday...

‘There Will Be No Withdrawal’: Syrian Allies Say US Has Promised to Keep Some Troops There

U.S. ground forces are still fighting ISIS in Syria as the Biden administration changes its approach in Afghanistan and Iraq—but for how long?

America’s Kurdish allies say the uncertainty—about U.S. troops’ continued presence in northeast Syria, about Washington’s will to keep Turkey in check—has emboldened Ankara, which Syrian Kurds view as more dangerous than the Assad regime...