US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived Tuesday in Jordan on a Middle East tour to show commitment to the region after President Donald Trump’s surprise decision to withdraw troops from war-torn Syria. A major focus of the tour will be sustaining a regional coalition to counter Iran, the main enemy of US allies Saudi Arabia and Israel. Last year, Trump pulled out of an international accord negotiated under Obama on ending Iran’s nuclear programme and has instead reimposed biting sanctions. Pompeo, in an interview before his departure, said that Erdogan had “made a commitment” to Trump not to attack Washington’s Kurdish allies who have fought IS in Syria. “It is not possible to accept or swallow the message given by Bolton from Israel,” Erdogan told his party’s lawmakers in parliament.

Source: Egypt Independent January 08, 2019 11:03 UTC