BAGHDAD, December 26 -- President Donald Trump has made a surprise Christmas visit to US troops in Iraq, his first trip to a conflict zone nearly two years into his presidency and days after announcing a pullout of American troops from Syria. Air Force One touched down at the Al Asad Air Base west of Baghdad on Wednesday after an overnight flight from Washington with first lady Melania Trump, a small group of aides and Secret Service agents, and a pool of reporters. He was expected to stay for around three hours. Trump has drawn fire from some in the US military for not having visited US troops in conflict zones since taking office in January 2017, particularly after he cancelled a trip to a World War One cemetery in France last month due to rain. On his way home from Iraq, Trump will also stop to visit troops at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. Trump was looking for some positive headlines after days of turmoil over his decisions to withdraw all US troops from Syria, pull out half of the 14,000-strong contingent in Afghanistan, and push out Defense Secretary James Mattis two months earlier than planned for criticising his policies. Many Republican and Democratic lawmakers have heaped scorn on Trump for his sudden order last week to withdraw from Syria. On his stop in Iraq, he defended his decision to pull out the 2000 troops from Syria, which he has said was made possible by the defeat of Islamic State militants.
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BAGHDAD, December 26 -- The ISIS terrorist group has kicked off a series of attacks in western and northwestern regions of Iraq, revealed security and political sources. Examples of these attacks, were the car bombing in Tal Afar on Tuesday that left two people dead and the kidnapping of 14 civilians in Kirkuk also on Tuesday. The developments have taken place a year since former Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi’s announcement that ISIS has been defeated in Iraq. An informed political source told Asharq Al-Awsat that prior to the arrival of ISIS, corruption among the military was rife in these regions. This would eventually pave the way for ISIS’ onslaught. After the liberation, however, the regions became embroiled in a struggle for power among forces that emerged victorious in the May parliamentary elections, the source said on condition of anonymity. Each of the victors alone wants to assume power, he went on to say. This dispute is being played out in parliament and government whereby the Sunni camp has been split into two: the Islah and Binaa blocs. The rivalry between them is demonstrated in the differences over ministerial portfolios. The dispute could later seep into the provinces and state agencies, he added. This rivalry could ultimately be exploited by ISIS, he warned.
Meanwhile, security expert Saeed al-Jayashi told Asharq Al-Awsat that since June, ISIS has been working on developing its media and since August, it has been upping its terror operations. He added that the Iraqi armed forces have developed high expertise in combating ISIS. The current developments, however, he warned, cannot be tackled with security measures, but through political and social means. On the Tal Afar bombing, MP Hassan Touran told Asharq Al-Awsat that the region is an important Turkmen area. It also lies inside the Nineveh province and on the volatile Syrian border. ISIS is trying to regroup and recover its power in this region through all possible means, he warned. The security plan in place must therefore be reviewed in order to counter the organization. BAGHDAD, December 25 -- Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) claimed responsibility for a car bomb attack in the northern Iraqi city of Tal Afar. The group said on its news agency Amaq on Tuesday. The attack on Tal Afar, a former IS stronghold, killed two people and wounded 11, Reuters reported, citing the Iraqi military. Tal Afar is about 80km west of Mosul. The city experienced cycles of sectarian violence between Sunnis and Shiites after the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, and produced some of IS’s most senior commanders. The city with about 200,000 residents came under the militants’ control when IS overran swathes of Iraq’s north in 2014. ANKARA, December 25 -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent more troops to Syria’s border on Monday ahead of an imminent U.S. withdrawal, as the White House announced he had invited Donald Trump to Ankara. Unlike several other allies of the United States, Turkey has praised President Trump’s decision to withdraw 2,000 of his ground forces from Syria, a country where it will now have a freer rein to target Kurdish fighters. On Monday Ankara sent more troops to its Syrian border and said an offensive targeting the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia and IS group will be launched in the coming months. Turkey views the YPG as a “terrorist offshoot” of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984. But the militia has also been a key U.S. ally in the fight against Islamic State in Syria, working with American forces on the ground there. “Just as we did not leave our Syrian Arabs to Daesh (ISIS), we will not leave Syrian Kurds to the cruelty of the PKK,” Erdogan said during a speech in Ankara. A Turkish military convoy arrived overnight on Monday at the border with local media reporting that some vehicles had entered Syria. In a telephone conversation Sunday between Trump and Erdogan, which both sides described as “productive,” they agreed to avoid a power vacuum in Syria after the U.S. withdrawal. “President Erdogan invited President Trump to visit Turkey in 2019. While nothing definite is being planned, the president is open to a potential meeting in the future,” a White House spokesperson later said on Monday evening. Erdogan’s spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told reporters on Monday that a U.S. military delegation would arrive this week to “discuss how to coordinate (the withdrawal) with their counterparts.” A Turkish foreign ministry delegation would go to Washington for talks early January, he added. Trump stunned the U.S. political establishment and allies last week with his decision, days after Erdogan had warned that Ankara would soon launch an offensive in northern Syria. Critics of Trump’s decision fear that thousands of Islamic State (ISIS) group extremist members are still thought to be in Syria, despite Trump’s claim of having defeated ISIS. The U.S. leader tweeted that Erdogan had told him Ankara would “eradicate” the last IS elements. And Kalin vowed that there was “no question of a step backwards, vulnerability or a slowdown in the fight against Daesh (ISIS).” He added: “Turkey will show the same determination against Daesh. To beat Daesh, we don’t need the PKK or the YPG. We can bring peace to this region.” The Turkish military convoy with howitzers, artillery batteries and several units of the armed forces, was deployed to the border district of Elbeyli in Kilis province, state news agency Anadolu reported on Monday. WASHINGTON, December 24 -- The order to withdraw American troops from Syria has been signed, the US military said Sunday, after President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart agreed to prevent a power vacuum in the wake of the controversial move. The announcement that US troops would leave the civil war-racked country -- where they have been deployed to assist in the multinational fight against the Islamic State (ISIS) jihadist group -- shocked global partners and American politicians alike. "The execute order for Syria has been signed," a US military spokesperson said when asked about the withdrawal order, without providing further details. Turkey was a rare ally that lauded Trump's momentous decision on Syria, a country where it will now have a freer rein to target US-allied Kurdish fighters who have played a major role in the war against IS but are deemed terrorists by Ankara. Trump and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by telephone on Sunday and "agreed to ensure coordination between their countries' military, diplomatic and other officials to avoid a power vacuum which could result following any abuse of the withdrawal and transition phase in Syria," the Turkish presidency said in a statement. Late Sunday, Trump tweeted that Erdogan had assured him that any remaining IS fighters in Syria will be eliminated. "President Erdogan of Turkey has very strongly informed me that he will eradicate whatever is left of ISIS in Syria," Trump said in a Tweet around midnight Sunday, using another acronym for the jihadist group. Repeating a pattern of admiring comments towards global strongmen, Trump added that Erdogan "is a man who can do it." The US president concluded: "Our troops are coming home!" MOSCOW, December 23 -- Russia’s upcoming Mi-28NM attack helicopter is being tested with an upgraded engine. “The safety, functionality and flight characteristics of the combat helicopter have been considerably increased by furnishing the VK-2500P [engine] with the upgraded automated control system,” announced the Rostec Corporation press office. The Mi-28NM “Night Hunter” is a modernization of the Mil Mi-28, NATO reporting name “Havoc,” a staple Soviet attack helicopter in use since the early 1980s. The original Mi-28’s prolific operational history extends all the way to Russia’s involvement in the Syrian Civil War, where a host of technical problems with its onboard electronic systems and engine performance were laid bare. The original Mi-28 has seen several variants over the past few decades, including a daylight Mi-28D and all-weather Mi-28N. Whereas previous iterations involved minor adaptability changes, the Mi-28NM is a comprehensive redesign intended to serve as Russia’s flagship attack helicopter for the foreseeable future. “Innovative technologies and solutions implemented in the design of that helicopter, not only just improved its characteristics, but also made Mi-28NM an almost perfect combat vehicle,” General Director of “Helicopter Holding Russia” Alexander Mikheyev announced. Manufacturing of the Mi-28NM began in 2008, and the latest prototype was prominently displayed at Russia’s “Army 2018” military exhibition . The Mi-28NM’s Army 2018 debut was largely to demonstrate its formidable Khrisantema-V anti-tank guided missile system, which builds on older Khrizantema (“Chrysanthemum”) models with improved target acquisition technology. The Mi-28NM previously used a VK-2500 engine, which was itself a replacement for the Ukrainian-made TV3-117VMA housed in the original Mi-28. It is not difficult to see why the Russian Air Force (VKS) would want to upgrade the aging TV3-117VMA to accommodate the Mi-28NM’s new precision-guided weapons system and faster maximum speed. Less apparent is the reason for the recent jump from the VK-2500 to VK-2500P. Was the VK-2500 initially intended as an intermediate solution while the more powerful 2500P is in development, or did the manufacturer discover somewhere along the way that a different engine is needed to meet the 28NM’s design parameters? Rostec Executive Director Oleg Yevtushenko announced that the “new engine and its ‘digital filling’ considerably increase the ‘Night Hunter’s’ performance characteristics and make it one of the best in the world in its class,” but raw performance differences between the 2500 and 2500P are relatively minor. The VK-2500P goes up to 2800 hp (horsepower) in emergency power mode and 2500 hp in regular take-off regime, as compared with the 2700 and 2400 hp of the VK-2500. Then what, if not significant performance gains, can explain the move to a different engine? Long-term financial considerations. The VK-2500P boasts a significantly longerrun time before the first major maintenance at 3,000 engine cycle hours, versus the 2,000 hours of the VK-2500. It likewise offers a service life of 12,000 cycle hours, while the VK-2500 only reaches 9,000. Transitioning to a more efficient Mi-28NM engine with a less frequent maintenance schedule and longer service life will almost certainly cut costs, especially if the Russian Air Force plans to use the VK-2500P for other military helicopters as it continues to modernize its roster. In the likely case that the Mi-28NM will become be an export product in the coming years, a more efficient engine is a clear selling point for foreign buyers. Over the past decade, older variants of the original Mil Mi-28 were sold to Venezuela, Algeria, and Iraq. ANKARA, December 22 -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that his country would postpone a military operation against Syrian Kurdish fighters in northeast Syria.
He "cautiously" welcomed Washington's decision to withdraw its troops in the area. Speaking during a speech in Istanbul, Erdogan said the US decision meant Turkey would "wait a little longer" before launching the operation. "Of course, this is not an open-ended waiting period," he warned, adding that Turkey was working on plans to "neutralise Daesh elements" that still exist in Syria. Daesh is the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS). Erdogan had announced on December 12 that Turkey would start an offensive in northern Syria in "the next few days", but on December 14, he spoke to US President Donald Trump in a phone call. According to Turkish daily Hurriyet on Friday, Trump decided to pull out of Syria during that call with Erdogan and ordered his national security adviser John Bolton to "start the work" to prepare withdrawing troops. Clear ISIL, Kurdish armed groups Erdogan also promised on Friday to clear Syria of US-backed Kurdish armed groups after the US decision to pull troops out. "In the next months, we will see an operational style aimed at removing the YPG (Kurdish People's Protection Units militia) and Daesh (ISIL) elements on the ground in Syria," Erdogan said. The Turkish government views the US-backed YPG as an extension of an armed group fighting inside Turkey. Although Erdogan welcomed Trump's decision to leave Syria, he said he remained "cautious" because of "past negative experiences", referring to Ankara's continued disappointment over the US administration's failure to stop providing military support to the YPG in their fight against ISIL. In November last year, Turkish officials said Trump had promised not to supply weapons to the YPG, although the White House was not as explicit about its intentions. American support of the YPG, which spearheaded Washington's battles in Syria to eliminate armed groups, has long been a source of tension between the NATO allies. Meanwhile, on Friday, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is made up of an alliance of Arab and Kurdish groups, said they may not be able to hold ISIL prisoners if the situation in the region gets out of control. Ilham Ahmed of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) warned that the Trump administration's decision to withdraw all of its forces would have dangerous repercussions and a destabilizing effect on the entire region. ERBIL, DECEMBER 19 -- The Netherlands will continue training Peshmerga forces loyal to northern Iraq’s Kurdish Regional Government (KRG), Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok said Tuesday. Blok made the assertion at a joint press conference held with KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani in Erbil, the KRG’s administrative capital. The Netherlands, Blok confirmed to reporters, would continue training Peshmerga officers at Erbil’s Training Coordination Center. “We will also provide military advisers as part of our joint reform plan for the region’s security sector,” he said. Barzani, for his part, said the KRG had also asked the Netherlands for assistance in the local food and agriculture sector. A delegation from the local private sector, he added, would soon visit the Netherlands to take part in a seminar. In September, the Dutch government announced plans to deploy 50 soldiers to northern Iraq to secure areas recently liberated from the Daesh terrorist group. The Dutch foreign minister arrived in Erbil from Baghdad earlier Monday as part of a tour of northern Iraq. According to Iraq’s federal system, all agreements between foreign states and the KRG must first be approved by Baghdad. |
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