Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading back to the Middle East as the Biden administration tries to shape the unfolding chaos in Syria before Donald Trump returns to the White House.
Blinken is scheduled to depart Washington for the region on Wednesday, just days after a surprisingly rapid rebel advance across Syria ousted the brutal dictator Bashar Al-Assad from the capital Damascus.
The trip is his 12th to the region since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in late 2023, and will begin in Jordan and continue in Turkey, two key allies that both have long borders with Syria.
"The Secretary will reiterate the United States' support for an inclusive, Syrian-led transition to an accountable and representative government," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement on Wednesday morning.
The fall of the Assad regime, which had been supported by Iran and Russia, has led to jubilation among Syrians and massive celebrations in Damascus. But the power vacuum left by the sudden implosion of the government, and the rise of an Islamist insurgent group backed by Turkey, has led to chaos and uncertainty that is already being exploited by both domestic groups and regional players.
Israel has seized the moment to try and ensure that the Assad regime's weapons don't fall into the hands of any Islamist groups, sending fighter jets on hundreds of airstrikes over the past few days to destroy much of Syria's naval and air force armaments. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also sent his armed forces into a military buffer zone between the two countries.
Other armed groups supported by Turkey have also made inroads against U.S.-supported Kurdish forces, who have been battling Islamic State militants. The U.S. has about 900 troops based in Syria to assist that mission - which President Joe Biden has pledged to maintain.
But Trump, who will assume power on Jan. 20, has been clear that he doesn't consider Syria to be America's problem - and many observers believe he will pull U.S. forces out of the beleaguered country, which has been engulfed by civil war since 2011.
"Syria is a mess, but is not our friend," he wrote on X over the weekend. "The United States should have nothing to do with it. This is not our fight. Let it play out. Do not get involved!"
A key focus now for the Biden administration and other neighboring countries is preventing the resurgence of Islamic State, which emerged from the chaos of the disastrous 13-year civil war.
But another crucial priority is trying to use U.S. leverage to forge the understandably chaotic current state of affairs into an ordered political process.
A key part of that leverage is U.S. recognition of a new government, a move that would help Syria avoid the international isolation that has befallen the Taliban government in Afghanistan.
On Tuesday, Blinken said in a statement that the U.S. would be prepared to recognize a Syrian government that adhered to certain principles. He said a new government must respect the rights of Syria's minorities, help get aid to all those in need, prevent the country from being used as a base for terrorism or threatening neighbors, and ensure chemical weapons stockpiles are secured and destroyed.
At the same time, the Biden administration's attempts over the last year to influence events in the Middle East have largely failed - most notably as the war in Gaza has dragged on and when Israel ignored U.S. warnings to expand the conflict with an invasion of Lebanon to confront the Hezbollah militia.
While in the Middle East, Blinken will also discuss the need for a ceasefire and hostage deal in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, as well as efforts to monitor the cessation of hostilities agreement between Israel and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, the State Department said.
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