McGurk has served as the US envoy to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, another acronym for the jihadist group, since 2015. "It left our coalition partners confused and our fighting partners bewildered," he said, according to the paper. Just after announcing his Syria decision Trump again confounded international partners with plans to slash troop numbers in Afghanistan. The US has for years supported the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against IS in Syria. On Friday, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders dismissed concerns over the slew of resignations and Trump's isolation.

Source: Bangkok Post December 22, 2018 20:48 UTC