Trump says he would return troops to Syria if needed

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON

The U.S. would return its forces to Syria if Daesh makes a comeback in the war-torn country, President Donald Trump said Sunday.

Asked about a possible resurgence of the terror group, Trump told CBS News “we’ll come back if we have to.”

“We have very fast airplanes, we have very good cargo planes. We can come back very quickly,” he said in remarks taped Friday, but aired ahead of Sunday's Super Bowl.

Trump pointed to a military installation in Iraq, which the U.S. could use to facilitate the operation if needed. Some U.S. troops currently stationed in Syria will be sent to that base, while others will return home, he said.

The remarks follow his announcement in December that the U.S. would be pulling out of northeastern Syria after claiming Daesh’s defeat at the hands of the U.S.-led international coalition.

Amid pushback from within his administration and from key U.S. lawmakers, Trump later signaled a "slow & highly coordinated pullout" from the country but the Pentagon has continued to plan for the withdraw.

A Pentagon report expected to be released as early as next week warns Daesh could regain the territory it has lost within six months to a year if the U.S. reduces military pressure on the group, CNN reported citing an anonymous official familiar with the review.