Trump ordered the US military to withdraw from Syria within four months.

US President Donald Trump. Photo:Politico.

"If anyone other than Donald Trump did what I did in Syria, which was a mess of ISIS when I took office, they would be national heroes," U.S. President Donald Trump posted online.TwitterOn December 31st, referring to the acronym for the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS), he stated, "IS has been almost completely defeated, and we are gradually bringing our soldiers back to their families while continuing to fight the remaining IS forces."

The New York Times claims that Trump will give the military about four months to withdraw troops from Syria, despite previously ordering a 30-day withdrawal. During his trip to Iraq last week, Trump also told Lieutenant General Paul J. LaCamera, commander of US forces in Syria, that the military would have several months to withdraw.

In early December, Trump announced he had ordered the withdrawal of approximately 2,000 US troops from Syria because ISIS had been defeated. This decision led to the resignation of Defense Secretary James Mattis, who reportedly tried to dissuade Trump from ordering the withdrawal.

This decision also provoked a strong reaction from bipartisan members of Congress, including some close allies of Trump, such as Senator Lindsey Graham. However, Graham said on December 30 that he felt "more reassured" about Syria after lunch with the President. According to Graham, Trump changed his decision to withdraw troops "immediately" in order to reassess the situation on the ground.

In addition to Syria, Trump also announced he would withdraw half of the 14,000 US troops currently deployed in Afghanistan. The White House and the Pentagon have not yet announced specific troop withdrawal plans from Syria and Afghanistan.