I really try to stay out of the political issues around the military, but recent events have made me feel the need to speak up. I have been seeing a lot of clients that are struggling with the way things are being handled in our country concerning foreign policy, specifically the Middle East.
Most veterans I see have an issue with the way President Trump is conducting foreign policy in the Middle East, specifically the abandonment of the Kurdish, and sending troops to Saudi Arabia. Many of our veterans have trained with and fought with the Kurds, this alliance goes back to the first Gulf War. The Kurds have helped fight Sandam Hussain and ISIS throughout the years. John fought beside the Kurds and came into session visually shaken because they were now being slaughtered because of the Trump policy in Syria. John appears to be struggling with the morality of leaving our allies when they need help. John feels the United States Military isnow becoming known as a mercenary military instead of a moral fighting force. John is startingto feel that the US military will be ordered to fight and die for the highest bidder and not US interest.
Some veterans have speculated for years that the US military has been fighting for big business and big oil, especially when we have gone to war with Iraq. But the President Trump squelched that speculation when he told the nation that he was renting out our armed forces in his roundabout way. Talking about the Saudi’s he stated that “They buy millions of dollars of merchandise from us!” so we will be sending our troops to Saudi Arabia to help the Saudi’s handle a possible attack by Iran, a threat partially made possible by the US pulling out of the Iranian deal and placing sanctions on them.
Pulling out of Syria and leaving the Kurdish fighters to fend for themselves against the second largest standing army in NATO is an insult to those fighters who have fought beside and been allies with the US for almost 30 years. The Kurdish people helped the US fight Saddam Hussain in the first gulf war and have continued to fight helping with US interest and hoping for a homeland. These Kurdish fighters are now on their own because they don’t buy weapons from us because they don’t have money. It is now known that the US is sending troops to Saudi Arabia to protect them because they have money. It is bothersome for some of those who have fought for the US to realize that we have given up the principles that make our country great. We only take up for the little guy if they buy their weapons from the US. Looks like a pay to play deal to me.
I know this has always been done to a point, but it has never been this “in your face” Desert Storm was a perfect example, when the oil supplies were threatened and the little guy was Kuwait with its large oil reserves the US was there. The president carefully words it so there is plausible deniability, and that should scare all of us as American citizens. But make no mistake about it, the ties the politicians and businessmen have with those countries that have money is the true reason our troops are sent to fight.
I know and understand that other presidents have done similar things like President Trump, the difference… the pullout of American troops in Syria has alienated a prime ally in the Middle East and opened the possibility of the resurgence of ISIS. The Kurds have been holding captured ISIS members in prison camps, it has been reported that ISIS troops and their families have escaped due to Turkey bombing the camps. If this is true the failed foreign policy by the Trump Administration would not only be a blow to the Middle East, it would be a huge blow to the world because ISIS could be allowed to be resurrected.
Since the Americans have pulled out of Syria and abandoned them the Kurds have had no choice but to turn to the Syrians and Russians for help fighting Turkey. This move is seen as an issue because many high-ranking Americans including Generals, and members on both sides of Congress appear to be forming alliances to stop President Trumps policy of pulling out of Syria and helping to de-stabilize the middle east worse than it was. It might be too late, the genie is out of the bottle and we have lost respect as a fighting force, one that is seen as being disloyal and quick to cut and run if there is no money to be made.
There are a lot of Veterans who support President Trump, but there is also a lot of veterans who do not like his policy. The President’s policy is adding stress to those who feel the US has lost the values that they fought for. John served with the Kurds and feels a loss because they were his brothers. They had that military combat bond that veterans have, something John says the President will never understand. It appears that President Trump is selling out to those with money and leaving out the values the US military is supposed to have. It scares a lot of Veterans about where we are going as a country and makes them wonder, what did we fight for?