US Presidential Envoy Brett McGurk visited “Coalition” forces in Syria


nsnbc : Brett McGurk, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for “The Global Coalition to Counter ISIS” visited “coalition partners” in Syria on June 28 – 29, nsnbc international learned.

YPG fighters during SDF operations (archives)

YPG fighters during SDF operations (archives)

McGurk was among other touring the frontlines between the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Islamic State in Syria, and – inadvertently or not – the undeclared frontline between the U.S.-led coalition and the Syrian Arab Army and its allies. McGurk consulted with “coalition representatives” and has invited several of them back to Washington for follow-up meetings.

The U.S.-led coalition told on Friday that “McGurk and his staff were working intensively with a myriad of local entities to prepare for ´this transition` even though the battle for Raqqa had only just begun”.

With “that transition”, McGurk referred not only to the liberation of Raqqa, but to the goal, declared by the Syrian Democratic Forces, to establish local governance in the city once ISIS has been driven out.

According to many independent analysts, such a “local – predominantly Syrian Kurdish administration” suggests a highly controversial precursor for a territory that will challenge the sovereignty of the government in Damascus and a precursor for a Kurdish corridor that may come to span northern Syria from the eastern Mediterranean to Raqqa.

McGurk credited the “bravery and sacrifice of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) for their ongoing operations against ISIS” and held “intense discussions with local leaders and councils on post-liberation issues”.

McGurk witnessed humanitarian work underway in liberated areas of Raqqa and he met with leaders of the Raqqa Civilian Council, including Council co-head Layla Mohammed, to discuss “stabilization efforts in post-ISIS Raqqa”.

The Envoy also met with several SDF officers. During these meetings McGurk stressed that “once Raqqa is liberated, it is critical that local officials from the area take over responsibility for post-liberation security and governance.”

During his tour, McGurk was accompanied by U.S. Lieutenant General Steve Townsend and Major General Rupert Jones. Coalition spokesperson Colonel Ryan Dillo explained that generals Townsend and Jones “as commanders, typically and routinely move around in both Iraq and Syria to get updates from other commanders in the field.”

McGurk also visited Tabqa city, which was liberated from ISIS on May 10. While the city is still digging out from the terror of ISIS and the month-long battle to liberate the city as well as the strategically important Tabqa Dam, McGurk met with local leaders coordinating assistance that has begun to flow, such as food deliveries, hygiene kits, relief items, and chlorine to provide safe drinking water.

After liberating the Tabqa Dam SDF forces were only kilometers away from Raqqa city.

After liberating the Tabqa Dam SDF forces were only kilometers away from Raqqa city.

The “Coalition” reported that McGurk “also visited the Tabqa Dam, which ISIS terrorists held for three years as a headquarters and fortress,” the coalition added. “Since the dam’s liberation, it has been cleared of mines and work is underway to restore its operations to deliver electricity to surrounding areas”. McGurk credited “the courage of those who have worked to clear land mines and IEDs left behind by ISIS throughout Tabqa.”

In the meantime, the US-led coalition announced that it is redoubling its humanitarian efforts, providing support to the thousands of IDPs that fled into the SDF-held cantons, from Raqqa and other areas under ISIS, regime and rebel control.

The Coalition is prioritizing the re-establishment of basic security and essential services. “As we accelerate our campaign and territory is liberated from ISIS, the United States and other Coalition partners are supporting the UN and the NGOs who are working to provide humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations,” the Coalition explained.

“It is critical that we remain closely linked with partners on the ground to coordinate both military and civilian efforts to sustain momentum against ISIS,” it added. In his two-day visit, McGurk emphasized the importance of unity of effort and local control of liberated areas following the ‎defeat of ISIS.

Concluding, the Coalition’s statement said the Brett McGurk “looks forwarding to welcoming all members of our coalition to Washington for meetings at the political directors level in July to organize and coordinate the next phases of our global campaign.”

Brett McGurk_USA_Washington_2017Brett McGurk serves as Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS at the U.S. Department of State. In this assignment, McGurk leads a global coalition of 68 members and helps coordinate all aspects of U.S. policy related to the ultimate destruction of ISIS.

His previous assignment was Deputy Special Presidential Envoy from September 2014 until November 2015. He previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Iraq and Iran in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs from August 2013 until his current appointment.

In the Obama administration McGurk served as a Senior Advisor in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs with a focus on Iraq and other regional initiatives, as a special advisor to the National Security Staff, and as Senior Advisor to Ambassadors Ryan Crocker, Christopher Hill, and James Jeffrey in Baghdad. During the Bush administration, from 2005 to 2009, McGurk served as Director for Iraq and then as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Iraq and Afghanistan.

In 2008 McGurk served as a lead negotiator and coordinator during bilateral talks with the Iraqi Government on both a long-term Strategic Framework Agreement and a Security Agreement to govern the temporary presence of U.S. forces and the normalization of bilateral relations between Iraq and the United States.

He was also one of the chief architects with President Bush of the strategy known as “the Surge,” in Iraq. McGurk had earlier served as a legal advisor to the Coalition Provisional Authority and then the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad under Ambassador John Negroponte.

McGurk is a graduate of Columbia University School of Law, where he served as Senior Editor of the Columbia Law Review. After law school, he served as a law clerk to Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist on the Supreme Court of the United States, Judge Dennis Jacobs on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, and Judge Gerard E. Lynch, on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

He holds a B.A. in political science with honors, Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of Connecticut, and has held fellowship positions at Harvard University and the Council of Foreign Relations.

CH/L – nsnbc 01.07.2017



Source Article from https://nsnbc.me/2017/07/01/us-presidential-envoy-brett-mcgurk-visited-coalition-forces-in-syria/

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