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King: U.S. Withdrawal From Syria Could Lead To 'Bloodbath'

Andrew Harnik
/
Associated Press
Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, center, accompanied by Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer of N.Y., right, speaks with reporters following a closed door policy luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, June 26, 2018.

Several U.S. senators continue to challenge President Trump's decision to withdraw the U.S. military from the Syrian conflict, despite the president's refusal to back down.  Maine Sen. Angus King, an independent, is among them.King says President Trump's decision to withdraw from the Syrian conflict is bad for the United States, bad for the Middle East, and bad for American Allies.

He joined with Sens. Lindsay Graham, Marco Rubio and others Wednesday to call on Trump to reconsider his decision to withdraw. 

He says abandoning the U.S.'s Kurdish allies will sow distrust among other American allies. 

"We could be responsible for a bloodbath," King said Thursday. "And I just think why would anybody ally themselves with us in the future if we turn around and walk away from them when we're in serious danger?"

Turkey considers Kurdish fighters who have been aligned with the U.S. to be terrorists, and expressed interest in entering northern Syria following the U.S. withdrawal.

The U.S. military has been involved in Syria since 2014.  About 2,000 troops remain in the region.