Pres. Joe Biden Vows Not to Abandon Kurdish Allies in Syria as He Did in Afghanistan: Report
US Vice President Joe Biden gestures during a joint press conference with the Turkish Prime Minister following their meeting on August 24, 2016 at the Cankaya Palace in Ankara. - US Vice President Joe Biden on August 24, 2016 said Washington had made clear that pro-Kurdish forces in Syria must not to cross west of the Euphrates River, a prospect alarming for Turkey. His comments come after Turkish troops launched an operation inside Syria to cleanse the key town of Jarabulus from Islamic State (IS) jihadists. ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

The head of the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said that President Joe Biden has promised the U.S. allies in Syria that he will not abandon them as he did in Afghanistan.

According to The Times, General Frank McKenzie, head of U.S. central command, was sent by the White House to give SDF military leader Mazloum Abdi personal assurance.

Abdi told The Times that the U.S. policy in Syria is "totally different" from that in Afghanistan. The report further noted that Abdi also met with Joey Hood, the State Department's acting assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs.

The American-backed SDF sees no changes despite the recent withdrawal of the U.S. troops from Afghanistan.

Biden Administration Official Says U.S. Troops to Stay in Syria

A senior Biden administration official earlier said that around 900 U.S. troops, including several Green Berets, will remain in Syria to continue supporting and advising the SDF fighting the Islamic State (IS) militant group.

The official told Politico that the SDF has been leading the combat operations against ISIS, with U.S. troops providing support from afar.

The official noted that it was the same role the troops have been playing since the American-led intervention in 2014. The official said the Biden administration has no plans to make any changes in the U.S. military operation in Syria.

"In Syria, we're supporting Syrian Democratic Forces in their fight against ISIS... That's been quite successful, and that's something that we'll continue," the official noted.

While Joe Biden has been firm in ending America's "forever wars" both in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Pentagon has been particularly quiet about its operations in Syria.

The U.S. has completed its military withdrawal from Afghanistan on August 30. Joe Biden earlier said the combat mission of the U.S. forces in Iraq will end by the end of this year but will continue to advise and train the Iraqi military.

BBC reported that there are some 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq helping local forces fight what remains of the Islamic State group.

Joe Biden Falsely Claims the U.S. Does Not Have Troops in Syria

Last month, Joe Biden incorrectly said that the U.S. does not have troops in Syria. The president made the remarks during an interview with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos as he defended himself against criticism for his withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, Fox News reported.

Joe Biden noted that Al Qaeda and ISIS "metastasize," and that "there's a significantly greater threat to the U.S. from Syria," from East Africa, and "to other places in the world than it is from the mountains of Afghanistan."

The president noted that the U.S. "have maintained the ability to have an overriding capability to take them out." Joe Biden then said that the U.S. "doesn't have military in Syria to make sure that we're gonna be protected, adding that he was "confident we're gonna have the overriding capability" in Afghanistan too.

According to Fox News, it was not the first similar misstep by Joe Biden. A White House's list of talking points earlier sent to Democrats defending his handling of Afghanistan reportedly claimed that there are no "boots on the ground" in Syria.

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Written by: Jess Smith

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