RFERL:

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has said that U.S. troops will remain in Syria indefinitely not just to fight militants but also to counter the power of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his ally Iran.

In a speech on January 17 announcing the first-ever open-ended commitment of U.S. troops to the war-battered Mediterranean country, Tillerson stressed that the mission of the U.S. military centers on destroying the Islamic State extremist group and preventing its return.

But he said another U.S. goal is to create the conditions of stability needed for leaders to emerge who can replace Assad, who he described as a "murderer," and also eject Assad's Iranian military advisers and fighters from the country.

"A total withdrawal of American personnel at this time would restore Assad to continue his brutal treatment against his own people," Tillerson told an audience at Stanford University.

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