In an interview with Sputnik, political expert Alexei Muraviev said that the decision was made by Washington in the absence of a clear foreign policy line in the Middle East.
"So far, Donald Trump has just allowed an increase of the US contingent in Syria and Iraq. What else his new militaristic turn will include is a rhetorical question. The most important question is whether the Trump administration has any foreign policy strategy in the Middle East at all," the expert said.
Muraviev recalled Trump's statements made during his pre-election campaign. At that time, he announced that the US should focus on its internal problems and withdraw its troops from the region.
"Now — taking into account the fact that he has been completely blocked in his domestic political initiatives — he decided to switch to the Middle East without any intelligible program. This is solely about saber-rattling with rockets, etc. This is very dangerous move," the expert stressed.
On April 26, Secretary of Defense James Mattis drafted a memo asking to conduct a review of the current maximum level of forces deployed to the countries.
In March, Defense Department spokesperson Capt. Jeff Davis said the US military can bring in additional troops to Syria for short periods of time without exceeding the existing formal cap of some 500 servicemen on the ground.
