President Donald Trump at a cabinet meeting earlier in the day said he will not reverse course on his decision to pull US troops out of Syria. The comment came just hours after reports that senior officials confirmed the United States would leave some 400 troops in the country.
"I am confident we can maintain a campaign," Dunford said on Friday.
On Thursday, the White House said a small contingent of forces would be left behind in Syria that will include 200 in a peacekeeping role.
In December, US President Donald Trump announced that Washington would pull out its forces, which had been operating in Syria for years as part of the international coalition fighting against the Islamic State terror group (banned in Russia).
READ MORE: US Likely to Retain Control of Northeast Syria After Troop Pullout — Official
Notably, the US forces have been operating in Syria without the authorization of the Middle Eastern country’s government or the UN Security Council. Washington has been supporting the Kurdish-led militia controlling the territories to the east of the Euphrates and opposing the Syrian government. Ankara, in its turn, sees the militia linked to the Turkey-based Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which the authorities have listed as a terrorist organization.
