Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria

<!DOCTYPE html> <html prefix="og: http://ogp.me/ns#" lang="en-US"> <head><script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/bundle-playback.js?v=HxkREWBo" charset="utf-8"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/wombat.js?v=txqj7nKC" charset="utf-8"></script> <script>window.RufflePlayer=window.RufflePlayer||{};window.RufflePlayer.config={"autoplay":"on","unmuteOverlay":"hidden"};</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/ruffle/ruffle.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> __wm.init("https://web.archive.org/web"); __wm.wombat("https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/","20190920104635","https://web.archive.org/","web","/_static/", "1568976395"); </script> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/banner-styles.css?v=S1zqJCYt" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/iconochive.css?v=3PDvdIFv" />  <meta charset="utf-8"><script type="text/javascript">window.NREUM||(NREUM={}),__nr_require=function(e,n,t){function r(t){if(!n[t]){var o=n[t]={exports:{}};e[t][0].call(o.exports,function(n){var o=e[t][1][n];return r(o||n)},o,o.exports)}return n[t].exports}if("function"==typeof __nr_require)return __nr_require;for(var o=0;o<t.length;o++)r(t[o]);return r}({1:[function(e,n,t){function r(){}function o(e,n,t){return function(){return i(e,[c.now()].concat(u(arguments)),n?null:this,t),n?void 0:this}}var i=e("handle"),a=e(3),u=e(4),f=e("ee").get("tracer"),c=e("loader"),s=NREUM;"undefined"==typeof window.newrelic&&(newrelic=s);var p=["setPageViewName","setCustomAttribute","setErrorHandler","finished","addToTrace","inlineHit","addRelease"],d="api-",l=d+"ixn-";a(p,function(e,n){s[n]=o(d+n,!0,"api")}),s.addPageAction=o(d+"addPageAction",!0),s.setCurrentRouteName=o(d+"routeName",!0),n.exports=newrelic,s.interaction=function(){return(new r).get()};var m=r.prototype={createTracer:function(e,n){var t={},r=this,o="function"==typeof n;return i(l+"tracer",[c.now(),e,t],r),function(){if(f.emit((o?"":"no-")+"fn-start",[c.now(),r,o],t),o)try{return n.apply(this,arguments)}catch(e){throw f.emit("fn-err",[arguments,this,e],t),e}finally{f.emit("fn-end",[c.now()],t)}}}};a("actionText,setName,setAttribute,save,ignore,onEnd,getContext,end,get".split(","),function(e,n){m[n]=o(l+n)}),newrelic.noticeError=function(e,n){"string"==typeof e&&(e=new Error(e)),i("err",[e,c.now(),!1,n])}},{}],2:[function(e,n,t){function r(e,n){if(!o)return!1;if(e!==o)return!1;if(!n)return!0;if(!i)return!1;for(var t=i.split("."),r=n.split("."),a=0;a<r.length;a++)if(r[a]!==t[a])return!1;return!0}var o=null,i=null,a=/Version\/(\S+)\s+Safari/;if(navigator.userAgent){var u=navigator.userAgent,f=u.match(a);f&&u.indexOf("Chrome")===-1&&u.indexOf("Chromium")===-1&&(o="Safari",i=f[1])}n.exports={agent:o,version:i,match:r}},{}],3:[function(e,n,t){function r(e,n){var t=[],r="",i=0;for(r in e)o.call(e,r)&&(t[i]=n(r,e[r]),i+=1);return t}var o=Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty;n.exports=r},{}],4:[function(e,n,t){function r(e,n,t){n||(n=0),"undefined"==typeof t&&(t=e?e.length:0);for(var r=-1,o=t-n||0,i=Array(o<0?0:o);++r<o;)i[r]=e[n+r];return i}n.exports=r},{}],5:[function(e,n,t){n.exports={exists:"undefined"!=typeof window.performance&&window.performance.timing&&"undefined"!=typeof window.performance.timing.navigationStart}},{}],ee:[function(e,n,t){function r(){}function o(e){function n(e){return e&&e instanceof r?e:e?f(e,u,i):i()}function t(t,r,o,i){if(!d.aborted||i){e&&e(t,r,o);for(var a=n(o),u=v(t),f=u.length,c=0;c<f;c++)u[c].apply(a,r);var p=s[y[t]];return p&&p.push([b,t,r,a]),a}}function l(e,n){h[e]=v(e).concat(n)}function m(e,n){var t=h[e];if(t)for(var r=0;r<t.length;r++)t[r]===n&&t.splice(r,1)}function v(e){return h[e]||[]}function g(e){return p[e]=p[e]||o(t)}function w(e,n){c(e,function(e,t){n=n||"feature",y[t]=n,n in s||(s[n]=[])})}var h={},y={},b={on:l,addEventListener:l,removeEventListener:m,emit:t,get:g,listeners:v,context:n,buffer:w,abort:a,aborted:!1};return b}function i(){return new r}function a(){(s.api||s.feature)&&(d.aborted=!0,s=d.backlog={})}var u="nr@context",f=e("gos"),c=e(3),s={},p={},d=n.exports=o();d.backlog=s},{}],gos:[function(e,n,t){function r(e,n,t){if(o.call(e,n))return e[n];var r=t();if(Object.defineProperty&&Object.keys)try{return Object.defineProperty(e,n,{value:r,writable:!0,enumerable:!1}),r}catch(i){}return e[n]=r,r}var o=Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty;n.exports=r},{}],handle:[function(e,n,t){function r(e,n,t,r){o.buffer([e],r),o.emit(e,n,t)}var o=e("ee").get("handle");n.exports=r,r.ee=o},{}],id:[function(e,n,t){function r(e){var n=typeof e;return!e||"object"!==n&&"function"!==n?-1:e===window?0:a(e,i,function(){return o++})}var o=1,i="nr@id",a=e("gos");n.exports=r},{}],loader:[function(e,n,t){function r(){if(!E++){var e=x.info=NREUM.info,n=l.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];if(setTimeout(s.abort,3e4),!(e&&e.licenseKey&&e.applicationID&&n))return s.abort();c(y,function(n,t){e[n]||(e[n]=t)}),f("mark",["onload",a()+x.offset],null,"api");var t=l.createElement("script");t.src="https://"+e.agent,n.parentNode.insertBefore(t,n)}}function o(){"complete"===l.readyState&&i()}function i(){f("mark",["domContent",a()+x.offset],null,"api")}function a(){return O.exists&&performance.now?Math.round(performance.now()):(u=Math.max((new Date).getTime(),u))-x.offset}var u=(new Date).getTime(),f=e("handle"),c=e(3),s=e("ee"),p=e(2),d=window,l=d.document,m="addEventListener",v="attachEvent",g=d.XMLHttpRequest,w=g&&g.prototype;NREUM.o={ST:setTimeout,SI:d.setImmediate,CT:clearTimeout,XHR:g,REQ:d.Request,EV:d.Event,PR:d.Promise,MO:d.MutationObserver};var h=""+location,y={beacon:"bam.nr-data.net",errorBeacon:"bam.nr-data.net",agent:"js-agent.newrelic.com/nr-1130.min.js"},b=g&&w&&w[m]&&!/CriOS/.test(navigator.userAgent),x=n.exports={offset:u,now:a,origin:h,features:{},xhrWrappable:b,userAgent:p};e(1),l[m]?(l[m]("DOMContentLoaded",i,!1),d[m]("load",r,!1)):(l[v]("onreadystatechange",o),d[v]("onload",r)),f("mark",["firstbyte",u],null,"api");var E=0,O=e(5)},{}]},{},["loader"]);</script> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0"> <title>Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria – Foreign Policy</title> <meta name="wapoGroupsX" content="default"> <meta name="google-site-verification" content="7Z5A6Xlt7BhqqooipJUtw0cu2IjSQ-_RnNbEA2c6pfc"> <meta name="apple-itunes-app" content="app-id=1034756405"> <meta name="pocket-site-verification" content="21de1071947281ccc893fa0bbfb1f6"/>  <link rel="canonical" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/">  <meta property="og:title" content="Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg"> <meta property="og:url" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/"> <meta property="og:description" content="The two U.S. allies have agreed to a marginal increase to help backfill the U.S. withdrawal."> <meta property="og:site_name" content="Foreign Policy"> <meta property="fb:app_id" content="107151292643652"/> <meta property="og:type" content="article"/>  <meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image"> <meta name="twitter:site" content="@ForeignPolicy"> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria"> <meta name="twitter:description" content="The two U.S. allies have agreed to a marginal increase to help backfill the U.S. withdrawal."> <meta name="twitter:image" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg"> <meta property="twitter:domain" value="foreignpolicy.com"/>  <meta property="article:author" content="Lara Seligman"> <meta name="author" content="Lara Seligman"> <meta name="application-name" content="Foreign Policy"> <meta name="apple-mobile-web-app-title" content="Foreign Policy"> <meta name="theme-color" content="#eb372e"> <meta name="msapplication-TileColor" content="#eb372e"> <meta name="msapplication-TileImage" content="https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/logos/favicon-256.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="192x192" type="image/png" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/logos/favicon-192.png"> <link rel="icon" sizes="192x192" type="image/png" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/logos/favicon-192.png"> <link rel="icon" sizes="16x16 32x32" type="image/x-icon" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/logos/favicon.ico"> <script> window.FP = window.FP || {}; FP.Config = {"api":{"ip_access":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/r\/api\/ip-access\/","link_access":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/r\/api\/link-access\/{0}\/","users_by_id":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/r\/api\/users\/{0}\/"},"context":{"is_home":false,"is_sponsored":false,"is_events":false},"current_site_admin_hostname":"foreignpolicy.com","current_site_hostname":"foreignpolicy.com","fonts":[{"family":"Dala Moa","option":{"style":"normal","weight":800}},{"family":"Solido","option":{"style":"normal","weight":400}},{"family":"Tiempos","option":{"style":"normal","weight":400}},{"family":"Tiempos","option":{"style":"normal","weight":600}},{"family":"Solido","option":{"style":"normal","weight":800}},{"family":"Solido Condensed","option":{"style":"normal","weight":600}}],"is_production":true,"marketing":{"after_content_messaging":"<p>Like this article? Read an unlimited number of articles, plus access to our entire 47-year printed archive, the FP App, and the Digital Magazine when you <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/subscribe?utm_source=AMP%20-%20Launched%2018_08_23&utm_medium=AMP&utm_campaign=Premium\">subscribe to FP Premium<\/a><\/strong>!<\/p>","after_content_messaging_fbia":"<p>Like this article? Read an unlimited number of articles, plus access to our entire 47-year printed archive, the FP App, and the Digital Magazine when you <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/subscribe?utm_source=FBIA%20-%20Launched%2018_09_04&utm_medium=FBIA&utm_campaign=Premium\">subscribe to FP Premium<\/a><\/strong>!<\/p>"},"misc":{"current_magazine_issue":{"isset":true,"link":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/the-magazine\/"}},"referrers":["google.com"],"user":{"login_url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/fp-reg.onecount.net\/onecount\/login\/loginlogout.cgi","logout_url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/fp-reg.onecount.net\/onecount\/login\/loginlogout.cgi","edit_profile_url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/fp-reg.onecount.net\/onecount\/flexreg\/displayform.php?g=0&form=387","registration_url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/http:\/\/fp-reg.onecount.net\/onecount\/flexreg\/displayform.php?form=137&brand=fp","customer_service_url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/subscribe.foreignpolicy.com\/FRP\/?f=custcare","view_count_limit":null,"paywall_resource_id":null,"registration_product_ids":[34],"subscription_product_ids":[26,235],"premium_product_ids":[145],"newsletter_ids":[177,185,129,161,227,317]},"widgets":[]}; window.lazySizesConfig = window.lazySizesConfig || {}; lazySizesConfig = {"lazyClass":"-lazy","preloadClass":"-preloaded","loadingClass":"-loading","loadedClass":"-loaded"}; </script> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://s0.wp.com/"/> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://ajax.googleapis.com/"/> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://validate.onecount.net/"/> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://ap.lijit.com/"/> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://cdn.taboola.com/"/> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://c.jsrdn.com/"/> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://s.w.org/"/> <link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="Foreign Policy » Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria Comments Feed" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/feed/"/> <script type="text/javascript"> window._wpemojiSettings = {"baseUrl":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/12.0.0-1\/72x72\/","ext":".png","svgUrl":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/12.0.0-1\/svg\/","svgExt":".svg","source":{"concatemoji":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-emoji-release.min.js?ver=5.2.3"}}; !function(a,b,c){function d(a,b){var c=String.fromCharCode;l.clearRect(0,0,k.width,k.height),l.fillText(c.apply(this,a),0,0);var d=k.toDataURL();l.clearRect(0,0,k.width,k.height),l.fillText(c.apply(this,b),0,0);var e=k.toDataURL();return d===e}function e(a){var b;if(!l||!l.fillText)return!1;switch(l.textBaseline="top",l.font="600 32px Arial",a){case"flag":return!(b=d([55356,56826,55356,56819],[55356,56826,8203,55356,56819]))&&(b=d([55356,57332,56128,56423,56128,56418,56128,56421,56128,56430,56128,56423,56128,56447],[55356,57332,8203,56128,56423,8203,56128,56418,8203,56128,56421,8203,56128,56430,8203,56128,56423,8203,56128,56447]),!b);case"emoji":return b=d([55357,56424,55356,57342,8205,55358,56605,8205,55357,56424,55356,57340],[55357,56424,55356,57342,8203,55358,56605,8203,55357,56424,55356,57340]),!b}return!1}function f(a){var c=b.createElement("script");c.src=a,c.defer=c.type="text/javascript",b.getElementsByTagName("head")[0].appendChild(c)}var g,h,i,j,k=b.createElement("canvas"),l=k.getContext&&k.getContext("2d");for(j=Array("flag","emoji"),c.supports={everything:!0,everythingExceptFlag:!0},i=0;i<j.length;i++)c.supports[j[i]]=e(j[i]),c.supports.everything=c.supports.everything&&c.supports[j[i]],"flag"!==j[i]&&(c.supports.everythingExceptFlag=c.supports.everythingExceptFlag&&c.supports[j[i]]);c.supports.everythingExceptFlag=c.supports.everythingExceptFlag&&!c.supports.flag,c.DOMReady=!1,c.readyCallback=function(){c.DOMReady=!0},c.supports.everything||(h=function(){c.readyCallback()},b.addEventListener?(b.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded",h,!1),a.addEventListener("load",h,!1)):(a.attachEvent("onload",h),b.attachEvent("onreadystatechange",function(){"complete"===b.readyState&&c.readyCallback()})),g=c.source||{},g.concatemoji?f(g.concatemoji):g.wpemoji&&g.twemoji&&(f(g.twemoji),f(g.wpemoji)))}(window,document,window._wpemojiSettings); </script> <style type="text/css"> img.wp-smiley, img.emoji { display: inline !important; border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; height: 1em !important; width: 1em !important; margin: 0 .07em !important; vertical-align: -0.1em !important; background: none !important; padding: 0 !important; } </style> <link rel="stylesheet" id="all-css-0" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635cs_/https://foreignpolicy.com/_static/??-eJytksFOxDAMRH8Ir9lKQDkgPmXlJt421Imj2GXVv6e76o0b9GZZM2/kkfFWIZUgS2TDYIYxmeMgGmaQNDRqK5qvwqecymkTPOHmCFqci6NPnDffVRunsUBVSWGF7vn8hmTGvuMeAMOBjPGS6d+goLlq2XyGNlHjeDR1YorcjqZW3dYHMzMVGg9v9arqf7nfnDyFHTjxPYGiAQk3N+BBdYZK641EwGlm/eZmkHVIwkDxkpMFEB4prL9i8wJVljEVwy/2SmF+/Os+3+Wf+eP88tr3Xde/9z/o7Q8l" type="text/css" media="all"/> <script type="application/javascript">var googletag=googletag||{};googletag.cmd=googletag.cmd||[];googletag.cmd.push( function(){googletag.pubads().disableInitialLoad()});</script><script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/2.2.4/jquery.min.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://foreignpolicy.com/_static/??-eJytkFEOgjAQRC9kWauC8mE8SymLlLTdZrdi4PRC4gUE/yaTvDfJwDspSzFjzJB7DCjQEaN7RpXIOzup01FfwYhgFhC2IJZdWvKIsSUGlEolpuAEC/PKVAxygL3SboE7Y5EaQR6RC8kmtsZTxH3+b7X65QfTMp+dhUGgz8GX0rtxE80oiWK7iX16aoz/y73ezJO4GdcLHuGuy+pW6/qsL8MH05XBkQ=="></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://validate.onecount.net/js/all.min.js#d98c7c783d091f556b12685e1604e895b8253f83"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://ap.lijit.com/www/headerauction/headersuite.min.js?configId=1472"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/static/js/_proxy_access.js?m=1562019843g"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://c.jsrdn.com/s/cs.js?p=22420"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var FPSharesEndpoint = {"endpoint":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/_share_count\/"}; var ajaxurl = {"ajaxurl":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://foreignpolicy.com/_static/??-eJyVzFEOgjAQhOELuS4oAj4Yz9I0K90GWtJZMN6ecgTfJvknH39X8jmZJGMLsgj4k4volGjNs/of3Zp2YJgz9RzBcLumqUYYIbgiuEZc+F/GFR90F4KciyqzzXZS7+XVPvr6fo7dPR5FPzjz"></script> <link rel="https://api.w.org/" href="https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-json/"/> <link rel="EditURI" type="application/rsd+xml" title="RSD" href="https://foreignpolicy.com/xmlrpc.php?rsd"/> <link rel="wlwmanifest" type="application/wlwmanifest+xml" href="https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-includes/wlwmanifest.xml"/> <meta name="generator" content="WordPress 5.2.3"/> <link rel="canonical" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/"/> <link rel="shortlink" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://bit.ly/2LFPQ7j"/> <link rel="alternate" type="application/json+oembed" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-json/oembed/1.0/embed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforeignpolicy.com%2F2019%2F07%2F09%2Fbritain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk%2F"/> <link rel="alternate" type="text/xml+oembed" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-json/oembed/1.0/embed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforeignpolicy.com%2F2019%2F07%2F09%2Fbritain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk%2F&format=xml"/> <style type="text/css">img#wpstats{display:none}</style> <style> .getty.alignleft { margin-right: 5px; } .getty.alignright { margin-left: 5px; } </style> <link rel="icon" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/cropped-favicon-512_2017.png?w=32" sizes="32x32"/> <link rel="icon" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/cropped-favicon-512_2017.png?w=192" sizes="192x192"/> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/cropped-favicon-512_2017.png?w=180"/> <meta name="msapplication-TileImage" content="https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/cropped-favicon-512_2017.png?w=270"/>  <script async src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=UA-6874192-41"></script> <script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; // Add additional data for GA / GTM dataLayer.push({ 'author': "Lara Seligman", 'category': "Exclusive", 'datePublished': "2019-07-09", 'region': "", 'tags': "Syria", 'vertical': "", 'pageType': "Article", 'inMagazine': "", // Values below defined after OC JS runs 'accessId': "", 'accessGroup': "", 'subscriberState': "" }); function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);} gtag('js', new Date()); // GA set config and WP post content group // GA track page group - syntax: gtag('config', 'GA_TRACKING_ID', {'content_group5': '/news/sports'}); if ('undefined' !== typeof realReferer && '' !== document.referrer && realReferer !== document.referrer) { // ONECount tracking override dataLayer.push({ 'dimension2': 'LID', 'dimension3': 'RGRP', 'dimension4': 'VID', 'realReferer': realReferer, // track category as content group, may be replaced by dataLayer below 'content_group1': "Exclusive" }); } else { // Standard tracking dataLayer.push({ 'dimension2': 'LID', 'dimension3': 'RGRP', 'dimension4': 'VID', // track category as content group, may be replaced by dataLayer below 'content_group1': "Exclusive" }); } </script>  <script>(function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start': new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src= 'https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f); })(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-KVBCHJC');</script>  <script type="text/javascript">googletag.pubads().setTargeting("tags",["Syria","Exclusive"]);</script><script type="text/javascript">googletag.pubads().setTargeting("postID","972785");</script><script type="text/javascript">googletag.pubads().setTargeting("author",["Lara Seligman"]);</script> </head> <body class="post-template-default single single-post postid-972785 single-format-standard site-root">  <noscript><iframe src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635if_/https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-KVBCHJC" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>  <div id="site-wrapper"> <header class="site-header"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/" class="logo"> <svg class="site-icon -inline -textonly" width="75" height="47.5" viewbox="0 0 75 47.5"><path fill="#EE3524" d="M39.4,8.7H40V0.5H0v0.8c4.5,0.2,7.4,0.8,7.4,4.9v36c0,4.2-2.9,4.8-7.4,4.9V48h26.2v-0.8c-5.2-0.3-9-0.8-9-4.9 V25.2h8.7c3,0,4.2,2.2,4.9,6.2h0.5V18h-0.5c-0.7,4-1.9,6.2-4.9,6.2h-8.7V1.3h13.3C35.9,1.3,37.7,2.8,39.4,8.7 M52.9,25.2h6.2 c11.1,0,15.9-5.8,15.9-13.1c0-6.4-4.5-11.7-17.3-11.7H40.9l0,41.8c0,4.2-2.9,4.8-7.4,4.9V48h27.3v-0.8c-5.2-0.3-9-0.8-9-4.9V1.5 h3.4c6.1,0,9.5,5.5,9.5,12c0,7.5-3.5,10.8-9.6,10.8h-2.4V25.2z"/></svg>  <span class="hide">Foreign Policy Magazine</span> </a> <div class="header-nav-wrapper"> <nav class="header-nav"> <ul class="header-menu -top"> <li class="header-menu-item"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/channel/news/" class="navlink">News</a> </li> <li class="header-menu-item"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/channel/analysis/" class="navlink">Analysis</a> </li> <li class="header-menu-item"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/podcasts/" class="navlink">Podcasts</a> </li> <li class="header-menu-item"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/the-magazine/" class="navlink">The Magazine</a> </li> <li class="header-menu-item -parent"> <a class="navlink">Channels</a> <ul class="header-menu -top"> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/channel/economics/" class="navlink">Economics</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/channel/security-2/" class="navlink">Security</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/category/elephants-in-the-room/" class="navlink">Elephants in the Room</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/category/shadow-government/" class="navlink">Shadow Government</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/channel/her-power/" class="navlink">Her Power</a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="header-menu-item"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/newsletters/" class="navlink">Newsletters</a> </li> </ul> <span class="close-nav"> <img draggable="false" class="emoji" alt="❌" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/close.svg"/>  Close </span> <div class="header-mobile-subnav"> <ul class="manage-account account"> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/manage" class="navlink navlink-border">Manage Your Account</a></li> </ul> <div class="expando-search"> <div class="icon"> <svg viewbox="0 0 18 18"> <circle class="search-icon" cx="7.5" cy="7.3" r="6.5"/> <line class="search-icon" x1="12.1" y1="11.9" x2="17.5" y2="17.3"/> </svg> </div> <form role="search" method="get" id="searchform-mobile" class="searchform" action="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/"> <label class="hide" for="searchfield-mobile">Search</label> <input class="search" type="search" name="s" id="searchfield-mobile"/> <input type="submit" value="search-submit" style="display:none"/> </form> </div> <span> <ul class="mobile-subnav-menu"> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://fpgroup.foreignpolicy.com/" class="navlink">About FP</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/staff/" class="navlink">Meet The Staff</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/reprint-permissions/" class="navlink">Reprint Permissions</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://fpgroup.foreignpolicy.com/" class="navlink">Advertising</a></li> </ul> <ul class="mobile-subnav-menu"> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/writers-guidelines/" class="navlink">Writers’ Guidelines</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://fpgroup.foreignpolicy.com/news" class="navlink">Press Room</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/employment-opportunities/" class="navlink">Work At FP</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/subscription-services/" class="navlink">Subscription Services</a></li> </ul> </span> <span> <ul class="mobile-subnav-menu"> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fpguide.foreignpolicy.com/" class="navlink">FP Guides – Graduate Education</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/subscribe-academic/" class="navlink">Academic Program – FP Premium</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/magazine/" class="navlink">FP Archive</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/buy-back-issues/" class="navlink">Buy Back Issues</a></li> </ul> <ul class="mobile-subnav-menu"> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/privacy/" class="navlink">Privacy Policy</a></li> <li class="header-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/contact-us/" class="navlink">Contact Us</a></li> </ul> </span> </div> </nav> </div> <div class="header-subnav-wrapper"> <nav class="header-subnav"> <ul class="header-menu -top"> <li class="header-menu-item"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/login/loginlogout.php?return=http%3A%2F%2Fforeignpolicy.com%2F" class="navlink -top -user -signin FP-paywall--login">Sign In</a> </li> <li class="header-menu-item"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/subscribe" class="navlink -top -user -emph"><span class="subscribe--long">Subscribe for $2.25/week</span><span class="subscribe--short">Subscribe</span></a> </li> </ul> <div class="expando-search"> <div class="icon"> <svg viewbox="0 0 18 18"> <circle class="search-icon" cx="7.5" cy="7.3" r="6.5"/> <line class="search-icon" x1="12.1" y1="11.9" x2="17.5" y2="17.3"/> </svg> </div> <form role="search" method="get" id="searchform-desktop" class="searchform" action="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/"> <label class="hide" for="searchfield-desktop">Search</label> <input class="search" type="search" name="s" id="searchfield-desktop"/> <input type="submit" value="search-submit" style="display:none"/> </form> </div> </nav> </div> <button class="hamburger-button"> <span class="line"></span> <span class="hide">Toggle display of website navigation</span> </button> <div class="header-alt-layout__title"> <p class="header-alt-title"> <span class="department-title"> Exclusive: </span> <span class="header-alt-title__desktop"> Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria </span> <span class="header-alt-title__mobile"> Britain, France Agree to Send Additional ... </span> </p> <div class="header-social-shares"> <span class="share-title">SHARE:</span> <a data-endpoint="facebook" data-title="Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria" data-text="The two U.S. allies have agreed to a marginal increase to help backfill the U.S. withdrawal." data-url="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/" onclick="socialshares.share(this);"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/facebook_blue.svg" alt="Share on Facebook" class="facebook-button"/> </a> <a data-endpoint="twitter" data-title="The two U.S. allies have agreed to a marginal increase to help backfill the U.S. withdrawal." data-text="The two U.S. allies have agreed to a marginal increase to help backfill the U.S. withdrawal." data-url="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/" onclick="socialshares.share(this);"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/twitter_blue.svg" alt="Share on Twitter" class="twitter-button"/> </a> <a data-endpoint="linkedin" data-title="Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria" data-text="The two U.S. allies have agreed to a marginal increase to help backfill the U.S. withdrawal." data-url="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/" onclick="socialshares.share(this);"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/linkedin_blue.svg" alt="Share on LinkedIn" class="linkedin-button"/> </a> <a href="#" title="Print" onclick="window.print();"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/print_black.svg" alt="Print this page" class="print-button"/> </a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/mailto:/?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20on%20Foreign%20Policy&body=Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria%20-%20https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/%2F" title="Share via Email"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/email_black.svg" alt="Share via Email" class="email-button"/> </a> </div> </div> </header> <script type="text/javascript">/* Load GPT asynchronously */var googletag = googletag || {};googletag.cmd = googletag.cmd || [];(function() {var gads = document.createElement("script");gads.async = true;gads.type = "text/javascript";var useSSL = "https:" == document.location.protocol;gads.src = (useSSL ? "https:" : "http:") +"//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://securepubads.g.doubleclick.net/tag/js/gpt.js";var node = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];node.parentNode.insertBefore(gads, node);})();googletag.cmd.push( function() { window.FP_gtagBannerSlots = {};/* Define a size mapping object. The first parameter to addSize is a viewport size, while the second is a list of allowed ad sizes. */var mappingMobileFooter = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Mobile fixed footer ad */addSize([320, 50], [320, 50]).build();var mappingSidebar = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 250], [300, 250]).build();var mappingSidebarLarge = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 250], [300, 250])./* Taller desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 600], [[300, 250], [300, 600]]).build();var mappingMainLarge = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Do not display these ads on smaller screens */addSize([0, 0], [])./* Small banner ad */addSize([728, 90], [728, 90])./* Large banner ad */addSize([970, 90], [[970, 90], [728, 90]]).build();var mappingMainLargeAndSmall = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 250], [300, 250])./* Small banner ad */addSize([728, 90], [728, 90])./* Large banner ad */addSize([970, 90], [[970, 90], [728, 90]]).build();var mappingMainSmall = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 250], [300, 250])./* Small banner ad */addSize([728, 90], [728, 90]).build();googletag.defineSlot("/7971222/global_superleaderboard_top", [[970, 90], [728, 90]], "div-gpt-ad-1452807828370-0").defineSizeMapping(mappingMainLarge).addService(googletag.pubads());googletag.pubads().disableInitialLoad();googletag.pubads().enableLazyLoad({fetchMarginPercent: 0,renderMarginPercent: 0,mobileScaling: 2.0}); googletag.enableServices(); } );/* Refresh ads on window resize */var refreshAdSlots = function() {googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.pubads().refresh(null, {changeCorrelator: false});});};window.addEventListener("resize", refreshAdSlots);</script><div id="div-gpt-ad-1452807828370-0" class="home-ad-region-1 _970"> <script type="text/javascript"> googletag.cmd.push( function() { googletag.display( "div-gpt-ad-1452807828370-0" ); } ); </script> </div> <div id="main" data-context="article" class="default default_text_style text_above_photo "> <div class="post-content" data-post-id="972785" data-premium="no" data-premium-trigger="yes" data-whitelist=""> <article class="article" data-post-id="972785" data-post-url="https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/" data-lfcollectionmeta="eyJ0eXAiOiJqd3QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJ0aXRsZSI6IkJyaXRhaW4sIEZyYW5jZSBBZ3JlZSB0byBTZW5kIEFkZGl0aW9uYWwgVHJvb3BzIHRvIFN5cmlhIiwidXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6XC9cL2ZvcmVpZ25wb2xpY3kuY29tXC8yMDE5XC8wN1wvMDlcL2JyaXRhaW4tZnJhbmNlLWFncmVlLXRvLXNlbmQtYWRkaXRpb25hbC10cm9vcHMtaW5jcmVhc2Utc3lyaWEtdXMtd2l0aGRyYXdhbC11a1wvIiwic3RyZWFtX3R5cGUiOiJsaXZlY29tbWVudHMiLCJjaGVja3N1bSI6Ijg2MGZlNDgzZDlmOWIyNjBkN2JlMmVjNmY0YjRhZjIxIiwiYXJ0aWNsZUlkIjoiZm9yZWlnbnBvbGljeV93cF85NzI3ODUifQ.wSsvmSlEKIsVsCeFy_PGfhvb-WQL1oeT24yVfxtPcDs" data-lfchecksum="860fe483d9f9b260d7be2ec6f4b4af21" data-lfarticleid="foreignpolicy_wp_972785"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/category/exclusive/" class="department-name"> <h3 class="department">Exclusive</h3></a> <span class="hed-heading" href="https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/"> <h1 class="hed">Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria</h1> </span> <h2 class="dek-heading">The two U.S. allies have agreed to a marginal increase to help backfill the U.S. withdrawal.</h2> <div class="meta-data "> <address class="author-list"> <span class="pre">By</span> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/author/lara-seligman/" rel="author" class="author"> Lara Seligman</a></address> <span class="separator">|</span> <time pubdate datetime="2019-07-09" title="July 9th, 2019" class="date-time"> July 9, 2019, 9:47 AM</time> </div> <figure class="figure-image "> <span style="padding-bottom:66.666666666667%; " class="image-attachment -ratioscale horizontal-orientation"> <img data-sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" data-srcset="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?quality=90 1500w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=150,100&quality=90 150w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=550,367&quality=90 550w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=768,512&quality=90 768w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=400,267&quality=90 400w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=401,267&quality=90 401w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=800,533&quality=90 800w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=275,183&quality=90 275w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=325,217&quality=90 325w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?resize=600,400&quality=90 600w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?w=800&h=533&quality=90" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" src="/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/" alt="A Coalition Forces CH-47 Chinook crew member looks down from the sky during a transport mission in northeastern Syria on June 22." style="width:auto;" class="image -fit -lazy"> <noscript> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5542961.jpg?w=800&h=533&quality=90" alt="A Coalition Forces CH-47 Chinook crew member looks down from the sky during a transport mission in northeastern Syria on June 22." class="image -fit-3-2"> </noscript> </span> <div class="caption"> A Coalition Forces CH-47 Chinook crew member looks down from the sky during a transport mission in northeastern Syria on June 22. <span class="attribution">Staff Sgt. Ray Boyington/U.S. Army</span> </div> </figure> <div class="post-content-main initial-drop-cap shares-position"> <p>In a major victory for U.S. President Donald Trump’s national security team, the United Kingdom and France have agreed to send additional forces to Syria to pick up the slack as U.S. troops withdraw, sources familiar with the discussions told <em>Foreign Policy</em>.</p> <p>Britain and France, the only other U.S. partners that still have ground forces in Syria, will commit to a marginal 10 to 15 percent troop increase, a U.S. administration official confirmed. Other countries may send small numbers of troops as well, but in exchange the United States would have to pay, the official said.</p> <p>Neither the timeframe for the deployment nor the exact number of additional troops is clear, the official said, adding that “overall we have been disappointed” in efforts to persuade U.S. allies to commit additional resources to the ongoing fight against the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria.</p> <p>In addition to Britain and France, Italy is close to a decision on whether or not to send additional forces, and a number of Balkan and Baltic states are “almost certain to send handfuls of soldiers each,” according to a separate source with knowledge of the discussions.</p> <p>Trump announced the United States would completely withdraw from Syria in December 2018, a move that prompted the resignation of then-Defense Secretary James Mattis and other top officials. However, he has since partially <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/02/22/how-john-bolton-won-the-beltway-battle-over-syria/">reversed course</a>, agreeing to leave a small U.S. footprint in the country.</p> <p>While it is a success for the administration, the marginal increase of U.K. and French troops likely won’t completely fill the gap left when U.S. forces leave. The U.S. footprint in Syria is expected to drop from an estimated 2,000 troops to just 400; the exact number of British and French forces in the country is unknown, but the second source estimated each country currently has just 200 to 300 troops there.</p> <p>The news comes a day after Germany <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://www.dw.com/en/syria-germany-rejects-us-demand-for-ground-troops/a-49512273">rejected</a> a similar U.S. request to send ground troops to Syria, where war has been ongoing since 2011. The German military currently provides reconnaissance jets, a refueling aircraft, and other noncombat military assistance to the fight against the Islamic State, according to German media.</p> <p>Some experts have recently <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/02/fears-rise-of-an-isis-comeback/">warned</a> that the Islamic State could return stronger than ever, particularly if the U.S. withdraws from Syria without a commitment by allies to fill in the gap.</p> <p>Without U.S. or allied support to sustain the security and stabilization gains the coalition has made, it’s likely that the Islamic State will “over time be able to prey upon local grievances,” as it did in the lead-up its 2014 takeover of major cities, and eventually “reconstitute and be able to take territory,” said Melissa Dalton, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.</p> <p>“The U.S. is repeating a critical mistake by deprioritizing this effort at a pivotal moment when our gains are at their most fragile,” <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/02/fears-rise-of-an-isis-comeback/">warned</a> a new report by the Institute for the Study of War. “The U.S. must take immediate steps to dampen ISIS’s resurgence in Iraq and Syria, including halting and reversing America’s ongoing withdrawal from Syria.”</p> <p>London and Paris operate covertly in Syria—reports <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://www.france24.com/en/20190223-usa-withdraw-troops-syria-trump-france-uk-military-kurds">indicate</a> both have special forces in the country—so it is unlikely any increase will be publicly announced. Alongside the United States, the U.K. and France took part in a series of air -and ship-based missile strikes against the Syrian regime in 2018 in response to the Douma chemical attack.</p> <p>The British Embassy did not return a request for comment. A spokesperson for the French Embassy said, “Officially France has no troop on the ground in Syria,” declining to comment further.</p> <p>But in a rare public acknowledgement, James Jeffrey, the top U.S. envoy to Syria and the counter-Islamic State coalition, recently signaled that the administration has made progress getting coalition forces to contribute additional troops.</p> <p>“Our expectation is the slack will be taken up by coalition forces—and we are getting a very encouraging response from them,” Jeffrey said in a recent <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://www.defenseone.com/politics/2019/06/exclusive-countries-may-begin-backfilling-american-ground-troops-syria-within-weeks-envoy-says/158097/?oref=d-mostread">interview</a> with <em>Defense One</em>.</p> <p>Britain and France have also expressed interest in contributing to<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/06/26/pompeos-hollow-plan-to-beef-up-security-in-the-persian-gulf-us-iran/"> Sentinel</a>, a maritime partnership designed to enhance security for commercial ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz and other choke points, the U.S. administration official said. The State and Defense departments developed Sentinel as a response to increased Iranian aggression against oil tankers in the world’s busiest shipping lanes.</p> <p>Most importantly, the U.S. administration is trying to convince the U.K., France, and other allies to contribute money for the Syria stabilization effort, the official said, pointing to “dire” conditions at the Rukban refugee camp, where the United Nations says about 45,000 people, mostly women and children, are trapped.</p> <p><span class="image-credit">Update, July 9, 2019: This article was updated to add comment from the French Embassy and further details on troop numbers in Syria.</span></p> <div data-fp-lazy-load-image></div> </div> <section class="bio-no-photo"> <div class="last-author"> <p><strong>Lara Seligman</strong> is a staff writer at <em>Foreign Policy</em>. Twitter: <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://www.twitter.com/laraseligman" target="_blank">@laraseligman</a></p> </div> </section> <div class="the-comments"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/comments_view/?view_post_comments=https%3A%2F%2Fforeignpolicy.com%2F2019%2F07%2F09%2Fbritain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk%2F" style="color:#fff">View<br/>Comments</a> </div> <div class="the-tags"> <span class="title">Tag:</span> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/tag/syria/" class="tag"> Syria</a></div> <div class="taboola"> <div class="taboola--inner border-top"> <p class="taboola--heading">Trending Now <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://www.taboola.com/" class="taboola--subheading" target="_blank">Sponsored Links by Taboola</a></p> <div id="taboola-below-article-thumbs"></div> <div class="taboola--subheading taboola--subheading__right">By Taboola</div> </div> </div> <div class="taboola taboola__fp"> <div class="taboola--inner"> <p class="taboola--heading heading__red">More from Foreign Policy</p> <div id="taboola-below-article-thumbs_fp"></div> <div class="taboola--subheading taboola--subheading__right">By Taboola</div> </div> </div> <div class="fp-related-wrapper related-articles--no-video"> <div class="related-articles"> <p class="heading-container"><span class="heading">Read More</span></p> <div class="blog-list-layout" data-post-id="972379"> <div class="excerpt-content--list --first-post content-block" data-post-id="972379"> <figure class="figure-image -nocaption"> <a style="padding-bottom:66.666666666667%; " href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/02/fears-rise-of-an-isis-comeback/" class="image-attachment -ratioscale horizontal-orientation"> <img data-sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" data-srcset="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?quality=80 1500w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=150,99&quality=80 150w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=550,364&quality=80 550w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=768,509&quality=80 768w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=400,265&quality=80 400w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=401,266&quality=80 401w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=800,530&quality=80 800w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=275,182&quality=80 275w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=325,215&quality=80 325w, https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?resize=600,398&quality=80 600w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?w=800&h=530&quality=80" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" src="/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/09/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk/" alt="A woman carries a bag containing her belongings at the Kurdish-run Al-Hol camp for displaced people in northeastern Syria on June 3." style="width:auto;" class="image -fit -lazy"> <noscript> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GettyImages-1147862663.jpg?w=800&h=530&quality=80" alt="A woman carries a bag containing her belongings at the Kurdish-run Al-Hol camp for displaced people in northeastern Syria on June 3." class="image -fit-3-2"> </noscript> </a> </figure> <div class="list-text"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/02/fears-rise-of-an-isis-comeback/"> <h3 class="hed">Fears Rise of an ISIS Comeback</h3> </a> <div class="dek-heading -excerpt"> <p class="dek">The U.S. drawdown could provide a dangerous opening for the Islamic State to resurge.</p> </div> <div class="meta-data -excerpt"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/category/report/" class="department-name -excerpt"> Report </a> <span class="separator">|</span> <address class="author-list -excerpt"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/author/lara-seligman/" rel="author" class="author"> Lara Seligman</a></address> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> <div class="sidebar"> <div> <script type="text/javascript">/* Load GPT asynchronously */var googletag = googletag || {};googletag.cmd = googletag.cmd || [];(function() {var gads = document.createElement("script");gads.async = true;gads.type = "text/javascript";var useSSL = "https:" == document.location.protocol;gads.src = (useSSL ? "https:" : "http:") +"//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://securepubads.g.doubleclick.net/tag/js/gpt.js";var node = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];node.parentNode.insertBefore(gads, node);})();googletag.cmd.push( function() { window.FP_gtagBannerSlots = {};/* Define a size mapping object. The first parameter to addSize is a viewport size, while the second is a list of allowed ad sizes. */var mappingMobileFooter = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Mobile fixed footer ad */addSize([320, 50], [320, 50]).build();var mappingSidebar = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 250], [300, 250]).build();var mappingSidebarLarge = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 250], [300, 250])./* Taller desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 600], [[300, 250], [300, 600]]).build();var mappingMainLarge = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Do not display these ads on smaller screens */addSize([0, 0], [])./* Small banner ad */addSize([728, 90], [728, 90])./* Large banner ad */addSize([970, 90], [[970, 90], [728, 90]]).build();var mappingMainLargeAndSmall = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 250], [300, 250])./* Small banner ad */addSize([728, 90], [728, 90])./* Large banner ad */addSize([970, 90], [[970, 90], [728, 90]]).build();var mappingMainSmall = googletag.sizeMapping()./* Desktop sidebar and mobile ad */addSize([300, 250], [300, 250])./* Small banner ad */addSize([728, 90], [728, 90]).build();googletag.defineSlot("/7971222/default_fp2_bigbox_ATF", [[300, 250],[300, 600]], "div-gpt-ad-1385102181603-0").defineSizeMapping(mappingSidebarLarge).addService(googletag.pubads());googletag.defineSlot("/7971222/default_fp2_bigbox_CENTER", [300, 250], "div-gpt-ad-1390433129530-0").defineSizeMapping(mappingSidebar).addService(googletag.pubads());googletag.defineSlot("/7971222/default_fp2_bigbox_BTF", [[300, 250],[300, 600]], "div-gpt-ad-1385071228815-0").defineSizeMapping(mappingSidebarLarge).addService(googletag.pubads());googletag.pubads().disableInitialLoad();googletag.pubads().enableLazyLoad({fetchMarginPercent: 0,renderMarginPercent: 0,mobileScaling: 2.0}); googletag.enableServices(); } );/* Refresh ads on window resize */var refreshAdSlots = function() {googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.pubads().refresh(null, {changeCorrelator: false});});};window.addEventListener("resize", refreshAdSlots);</script><div id="div-gpt-ad-1385102181603-0" class="channel-sidebar-big-box-ad _300"> <script type="text/javascript"> googletag.cmd.push( function() { googletag.display( "div-gpt-ad-1385102181603-0" ); } ); </script> </div> <div class="sidebar-list"> <h2 class="title">Latest</h2> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/20/refighting-the-balkan-wars-wont-lead-to-a-seat-at-the-table-in-brussels-goce-delcev-bulgaria-macedonia-serbia-croatia/"> <h3 class="hed">Refighting the Balkan Wars Won’t Lead to a Seat at the Table in Brussels</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2019-09-20" title="September 20th, 2019" class="date-time"> September 20, 2019, 5:00 AM</time> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/19/why-indians-and-pakistanis-want-a-war/"> <h3 class="hed">Why Indians and Pakistanis Want a War</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2019-09-19" title="September 19th, 2019" class="date-time"> September 19, 2019, 11:24 PM</time> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/19/pompeo-courts-controversy-with-process-of-protocol-chief-pick-senate-confirmation-state-department/"> <h3 class="hed">Pompeo Skirts Protocol to Appoint New Protocol Chief</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2019-09-19" title="September 19th, 2019" class="date-time"> September 19, 2019, 6:58 PM</time> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/19/whistleblower-fight-could-chill-reports-of-wrongdoing-law-president-trump-intelligence-complaint/"> <h3 class="hed">Whistleblower Fight Could Chill Reports of Wrongdoing</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2019-09-19" title="September 19th, 2019" class="date-time"> September 19, 2019, 5:07 PM</time> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/19/how-iran-supreme-leader-is-outmatching-trump-reuel-gerecht-interview/"> <h3 class="hed">How Iran’s Supreme Leader Is Outmatching Trump</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2019-09-19" title="September 19th, 2019" class="date-time"> September 19, 2019, 4:42 PM</time> </div> </div> </div> <div class="sidebar-list-more"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/category/latest/">See All Stories</a> </div> </div> <div class="fp-trending-wrapper trending-articles--no-video"> <div class="trending-articles"> <p><span class="heading">Trending</span></p> <ol> <li class="fp-trending-content"> <div class="fp-trending-count">1</div> <div class="title"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/19/israel-shouldnt-worry-about-ilhan-omar-it-should-worry-about-xi-jinping/">Israel Shouldn’t Worry About Ilhan Omar. It Should Worry About Xi Jinping.</a> </div> </li> <li class="fp-trending-content"> <div class="fp-trending-count">2</div> <div class="title"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/18/the-myth-of-u-s-energy-independence-has-gone-up-in-smoke/">The Myth of U.S. Energy Independence Has Gone Up in Smoke</a> </div> </li> <li class="fp-trending-content"> <div class="fp-trending-count">3</div> <div class="title"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/19/putin-is-trolling-the-united-states-in-the-persian-gulf/">Putin Is Trolling the United States in the Persian Gulf</a> </div> </li> <li class="fp-trending-content"> <div class="fp-trending-count">4</div> <div class="title"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/18/the-west-has-a-resentment-epidemic-populism/">The West Has a Resentment Epidemic</a> </div> </li> <li class="fp-trending-content"> <div class="fp-trending-count">5</div> <div class="title"> <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/18/the-real-reason-trump-wont-attack-iran-saudi/">The Real Reason Trump Won't Attack Iran</a> </div> </li> </ol> </div> </div> <div id="div-gpt-ad-1390433129530-0" class="ad-container _300"> <script type="text/javascript"> googletag.cmd.push( function() { googletag.display( "div-gpt-ad-1390433129530-0" ); } ); </script> </div> <div class="sidebar-list"> <h2 class="title">Voices</h2> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/17/this-is-the-moment-that-decides-the-future-of-the-middle-east/"> <h3 class="hed">This Is the Moment That Decides the Future of the Middle East</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -excerpt"> <address class="author-list -excerpt"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/author/steven-a-cook/" rel="author" class="author"> Steven A. Cook</a> </address> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/11/we-lost-the-war-in-afghanistan-get-over-it/"> <h3 class="hed">We Lost the War in Afghanistan. Get Over It.</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -excerpt"> <address class="author-list -excerpt"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/author/stephen-m-walt/" rel="author" class="author"> Stephen M. Walt</a> </address> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content last"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/09/05/asia-has-three-possible-futures/"> <h3 class="hed">Asia Has Three Possible Futures</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -excerpt"> <address class="author-list -excerpt"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/author/stephen-m-walt/" rel="author" class="author"> Stephen M. Walt</a> </address> </div> </div> </div> <div id="div-gpt-ad-1385071228815-0" class="channel-sidebar-big-box-ad _300"> <script type="text/javascript"> googletag.cmd.push( function() { googletag.display( "div-gpt-ad-1385071228815-0" ); } ); </script> </div></div> </div> </div> <div class="sticky_content"></div> <footer class="site-footer-wrapper"> <div class="site-footer"> <div class="logo"> <a style="padding-bottom:42%; " href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/" class="image-attachment -ratioscale"> <img data-srcset="" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/logos/FP.svg" alt="Foreign Policy Magazine" class="image -fit -lazy"> <noscript> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/logos/FP.svg" alt="Foreign Policy Magazine" class="image -fit"> </noscript> </a> </div> <nav class="nav"> <ul id="menu-footer-column-1" class="footer-menu"><li id="menu-item-660877" class="menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-660877 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://fpgroup.foreignpolicy.com/" class="navlink">About FP</a></li> <li id="menu-item-783354" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-783354 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/staff/" class="navlink">Meet the Staff</a></li> <li id="menu-item-660950" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-660950 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/reprint-permissions/" class="navlink">Reprint Permissions</a></li> <li id="menu-item-660880" class="menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-660880 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://fpgroup.foreignpolicy.com/" class="navlink">Advertise/Events</a></li> </ul><ul id="menu-footer-column-2" class="footer-menu"><li id="menu-item-939400" class="menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-939400 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.submittable.com/submit" class="navlink">Writer’s Guidelines</a></li> <li id="menu-item-660882" class="menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-660882 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/http://fpgroup.foreignpolicy.com/news" class="navlink">Press Room</a></li> <li id="menu-item-927639" class="menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-927639 footer-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/employment-opportunities/" class="navlink">Work At FP</a></li> <li id="menu-item-660957" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-660957 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/subscription-services/" class="navlink">Subscription Services</a></li> </ul><ul id="menu-footer-column-3" class="footer-menu"><li id="menu-item-927960" class="menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-927960 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fpguide.foreignpolicy.com/" class="navlink">FP Guides – Graduate Education</a></li> <li id="menu-item-927640" class="menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-927640 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/subscribe-academic/" class="navlink">Academic Program – FP Premium</a></li> <li id="menu-item-660886" class="menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-660886 footer-menu-item"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/magazine" class="navlink">FP Archive</a></li> <li id="menu-item-660961" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-660961 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/buy-back-issues/" class="navlink">Buy Back Issues</a></li> </ul><ul id="menu-footer-column-4" class="footer-menu"><li id="menu-item-927961" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-927961 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/privacy/" class="navlink">Privacy Policy</a></li> <li id="menu-item-660967" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-660967 footer-menu-item"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/contact-us/" class="navlink">Contact Us</a></li> </ul> <span class="powered-by-wpcom--parent"> <div>Powered by <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://wpvip.com/?utm_source=vip_powered_wpcom&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=VIP%20Footer%20Credit&utm_term=foreignpolicy.com" rel="generator nofollow" class="powered-by-wpcom">WordPress.com VIP</a></div> <div>© 2019, The Slate Group</div> </span> </nav> </div> </footer> </div> <div data-campaign="HSBC ROS nd Econ" data-stay-closed="false" data-mobile-ad="div-gpt-ad-1453402331387-0" data-refresh="30000" data-closeable="false" class="FP-mobile-ad FP-mobile-ad_fixedbottom"></div> <script id="template-mobile-regwall" type="text/template"> <div id="paywall_bg" class="mobile-regwall"> <div id="paywallWrapper"> <h1 class="medium_header" style="color: #fff;"> Please Log In / Register </h1> <h2>Returning Users</h2> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/login/loginlogout.cgi" class="overlay-button-large m-regwall-link FP-paywall--login" data-gael="MobiRegwallLogin">Log in</a> <h2>Want Unlimited Access?</h2> <a href="javascript:void(0);" class="overlay-button-large m-regwall_sublink" data-gael="MobiRegwallSub">Subscribe — 20% Off</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/" class="paywall_close_btn" data-gael="MobiRegwallClose"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/static/images/articlecounter-close.png" class="paywall_close simplemodal-close" alt="[X]"> </a> </div> </div> </script> <script id="template-ip-access" type="text/template"> <div class="overlay-container-dark overlay-the-week"> <button class="overlay-close"> Close this window <span></span> </button> <div class="overlay-content"> <h1 class="overlay-title">Welcome to <cite>ForeignPolicy.com</cite></h1> <div class="overlay-body"> <p> Your FP All Access subscription is provided by US Department of State, Bunche Library. </p> <p> Click <a class="overlay-close-link" href="javascript:void(0);">here</a> to access <cite>ForeignPolicy.com</cite>. </p> </div> </div> </div> </script> <script id="template-paywall-a" type="text/template"> <div id="paywall_bg" class="updated_paywall"> <div id="paywallWrapper"> <div id="paywall_header"> <h1> How does this story end? </h1> </div> <div class="paywall_text"> <p>Get access to all of Foreign Policy's content, subscriber-only newsletters, and the digital version of FP's award-winning magazine with our Basic subscription.</p> <div class="sub_btn_wrapper"> <a href="javascript:void(0);" data-action="Sub" class="sub_btn paywall_button"> Keep reading for $2.25/week </a> </div> <p class="learn-more">Learn More</p> <div class="learn-more-content"> <p><strong>INCLUDED:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Unlimited access to articles</li> <li>Five FP email newsletters</li> <li>Digital access to FP's print edition</li> </ul> <p class="close-learn-more"><img draggable="false" class="emoji" alt="❌" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/close-white.svg">  Close</p> </div> <p class="paywall_footer_cta"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/login/loginlogout.php" data-action="Log" class="already_sub_link FP-paywall--login"> Already a subscriber? <strong>Sign in to keep reading</strong>. </a> </p> </div> <a href="javascript:void(0);" data-action="Close" class="paywall_close_btn"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/close-white.svg" class="paywall_close simplemodal-close" alt="[X]"> </a> </div> </div> </script> <script id="template-paywall-b" type="text/template"> <div id="paywall_bg" class="updated_paywall"> <div id="paywallWrapper"> <div id="paywall_header"> <h1> How does this story end? </h1> </div> <div class="paywall_text"> <p>Get access to all of Foreign Policy's content, subscriber-only newsletters, and the digital version of FP's award-winning magazine with our Basic subscription.</p> <div class="sub_btn_wrapper"> <a href="javascript:void(0);" data-action="Sub" class="sub_btn paywall_button"> Keep reading for $2.25/week </a> </div> <p class="learn-more">Learn More</p> <div class="learn-more-content"> <p><strong>INCLUDED:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Unlimited access to articles</li> <li>Five FP email newsletters</li> <li>Digital access to FP's print edition</li> </ul> <p class="close-learn-more"><img draggable="false" class="emoji" alt="❌" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/close-white.svg">  Close</p> </div> <p class="paywall_footer_cta"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/login/loginlogout.php" data-action="Log" class="already_sub_link FP-paywall--login"> Already a subscriber? <strong>Sign in to keep reading</strong>. </a> </p> </div> <a href="javascript:void(0);" data-action="Close" class="paywall_close_btn"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/close-white.svg" class="paywall_close simplemodal-close" alt="[X]"> </a> </div> </div> </script> <div class="overlay-container-dark login-modal-container"> <div class="login-modal"> <span class="close-button"></span> <div class="sign-in"> <h3>Welcome back</h3> <p>Sign in to your <span class="fp-red">Foreign Policy</span> account</p> <form action="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/login/loginlogout.php" method="POST" name="loginform"> <label for="loginlogout_username">Email Address</label> <input type="text" name="loginlogout_username" id="loginlogout_username" placeholder="Enter your Email Address"/> <a class="show-sign-in--step-2 modal-button">Next</a> <div class="sign-in--step-2"> <label for="loginlogout_passwd">Password</label> <input type="password" name="loginlogout_passwd" id="loginlogout_passwd" placeholder="Enter your Password"/> <a href="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/login/forgotpassword.php?return=https%3A%2F%2Fforeignpolicy.com%2F&brand=fp" class="small-link" target="_blank">Forgot Password?</a> <input type="submit" class="button" value="Sign In" name="loginlogoutSubmit_login"/> </div> </form> </div> <div class="create-account"> <div class="create-account--step-1"> <h4>Need an account?</h4> <p>Sign up for free access to 1 article per month and weekly email updates from expert policy analysts</p> <a class="show-create-account--step-2 modal-button">Sign Up</a> </div> <div class="create-account--step-2"> <p class="sign-in--option">Already have an account? <a class="show-sign-in--step-2">Log in</a></p> <h3>Sign Up</h3> <p>Create a <span class="fp-red">Foreign Policy</span> account to access 1 article per month and free newsletters developed by policy experts</p> <div class="loading-placeholder"> <p>Loading</p> </div> <div id="oc-create-account-form"></div> </div> </div> <div class="callouts"> <p>Want unlimited access? <a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/subscribe">Subscribe today</a>.</p> </div> <div class="back"> <span class="show-sign-in--step-1">Go Back</span> </div> </div> </div> <div class="js-takeover default" id="premium-only-takeover" style="display:none"> <div class="js-takeover-content premium-only-takeover" id="premium-only-takeover--default"> <div class="oc-premium-subscription-takeover"> <div class="oc-premium-subscription-text"> <div class="oc-premium-subscription-text--inner"> <p class="close-back"><a href="/web/20190920104635/https://foreignpolicy.com/">◀ Go Back</a></p> <p class="premium-subhead">Premium Content</p> <h2>Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria</h2> <p>This page is only accessible by Foreign Policy Premium subscribers.</p> <p>FP Premium subscribers get insider access to in-depth research reports on complex topics with far-reaching geopolitical implications, as well as exclusive conference calls with FP’s editors and reporters, Foreign Policy’s award-winning print magazine, and advanced access to live events.</p> </div> <div class="oc-premium-subscription-text--form"> <div class="login-options"> <h3>Sign in or Subscribe to Continue</h3> <h4>Sign in to your Foreign Policy account</h4> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/login/loginlogout.cgi" class="FP-paywall--login FP-paywall--login--login button button--grey">Sign In</a> <h4 class="border-top">Not an FP Premium subscriber?</h4> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/flexreg/displayform.php?g=0&form=597&signup=1" class="button button--grey">Subscribe Now</a> </div> <div class="subscription-options" style="display:none"> <div class="basic-options" style="display:none"> <h3>Upgrade to FP Premium to Continue</h3> <p>Thank you for being an FP Basic subscriber. To get access to this special FP Premium benefit, upgrade your subscription by clicking the button below.</p> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/flexreg/displayform.php?g=0&form=597&upgrade=premium" class="button">Upgrade Now</a> </div> <div class="registered-options" style="display:none"> <h3>Subscribe to Continue Reading</h3> <p>Thank you for being an FP reader. To get access to this special FP Premium benefit, subscribe by clicking the button below.</p> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/flexreg/displayform.php?g=0&form=597" class="button">Subscribe Now</a> </div> </div> </div> </div> <a href="javascript:void(0);" data-action="Close" class="paywall_close_btn" style="display:none;" "> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/close-black.svg" class="paywall_close simplemodal-close" alt="[X]"> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="js-takeover default" id="premium-only-takeover--webinars" style="display:none"> <div class="js-takeover-content premium-only-takeover"> <div class="oc-premium-subscription-takeover"> <div class="oc-premium-subscription-text"> <div class="oc-premium-subscription-text--inner"> <p class="premium-subhead">Premium Content</p> <h2>Subscribe Now</h2> <p>This page is only accessible by Foreign Policy Premium subscribers.</p> <p>FP Premium subscribers get insider access to in-depth research reports on complex topics with far-reaching geopolitical implications, as well as exclusive conference calls with FP’s editors and reporters, Foreign Policy’s award-winning print magazine, and advanced access to live events.</p> </div> <div class="oc-premium-subscription-text--form"> <div class="login-options"> <h3>Sign in or Subscribe to Continue</h3> <h4>Sign in to your Foreign Policy account</h4> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/login/loginlogout.cgi" class="FP-paywall--login FP-paywall--login--login button button--grey">Sign In</a> <h4 class="border-top">Not an FP Premium subscriber?</h4> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/flexreg/displayform.php?g=0&form=581&signup=1" class="button button--grey">Subscribe Now</a> </div> <div class="subscription-options" style="display:none"> <div class="basic-options" style="display:none"> <h3>Upgrade to FP Premium to Continue</h3> <p>Thank you for being an FP Basic subscriber. To get access to this special FP Premium benefit, upgrade your subscription by clicking the button below.</p> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/flexreg/displayform.php?g=0&form=581&upgrade=premium" class="button">Upgrade Now</a> </div> <div class="registered-options" style="display:none"> <h3>Subscribe to Continue Reading</h3> <p>Thank you for being an FP reader. To get access to this special FP Premium benefit, subscribe by clicking the button below.</p> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://fp-reg.onecount.net/onecount/flexreg/displayform.php?g=0&form=581" class="button">Subscribe Now</a> </div> </div> </div> </div> <a href="javascript:void(0);" data-action="Close" class="paywall_close_btn"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/themes/foreign-policy-2017/assets/src/images/icons/close-black.svg" class="paywall_close simplemodal-close" alt="[X]"> </a> </div> </div> </div> <script> window.onload = function() { var userStatus = FP.Singletons.User.isStatus().then(function (is) { var userStatus = 'anon'; if(is.sub) { userStatus = 'paid'; } else if(is.prem) { userStatus = 'paid'; } else if(is.reg) { userStatus = 'lgdin'; } dataLayer.push({ 'sections': "Exclusive", 'authors': "Lara Seligman", 'userStatus': userStatus }); }); } </script> <script type="application/ld+json">{"@context":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/http:\/\/schema.org","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Foreign Policy","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","height":60,"url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/logo.png","width":74}},"@type":"NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2019\/07\/09\/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk\/"},"headline":"Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria","description":"The two U.S. allies have agreed to a marginal increase to help backfill the U.S. withdrawal.","Articlebody":"In a major victory for U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s national security team, the United Kingdom and France have agreed to send additional forces to Syria to pick up the slack as U.S. troops withdraw, sources familiar with the discussions told <em>Foreign Policy<\/em>.\r\n\r\nBritain and France, the only other U.S. partners that still have ground forces in Syria, will commit to a marginal 10 to 15 percent troop increase, a U.S. administration official confirmed. Other countries may send small numbers of troops as well, but in exchange the United States would have to pay, the official said.\r\n\r\nNeither the timeframe for the deployment nor the exact number of additional troops is clear, the official said, adding that \u201coverall we have been disappointed\u201d in efforts to persuade U.S. allies to commit additional resources to the ongoing fight against the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria.\r\n\r\nIn addition to Britain and France, Italy is close to a decision on whether or not to send additional forces, and a number of Balkan and Baltic states are \u201calmost certain to send handfuls of soldiers each,\u201d according to a separate source with knowledge of the discussions.\r\n\r\nTrump announced the United States would completely withdraw from Syria in December 2018, a move that prompted the resignation of then-Defense Secretary James Mattis and other top officials. However, he has since partially <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2019\/02\/22\/how-john-bolton-won-the-beltway-battle-over-syria\/\">reversed course<\/a>, agreeing to leave a small U.S. footprint in the country.\r\n\r\nWhile it is a success for the administration, the marginal increase of U.K. and French troops likely won't completely fill the gap left when U.S. forces leave. The U.S. footprint in Syria is expected to drop from an estimated 2,000 troops to just 400; the exact number of British and French forces in the country is unknown, but the second source estimated each country currently has just 200 to 300 troops there.\r\n\r\nThe news comes a day after Germany <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/syria-germany-rejects-us-demand-for-ground-troops\/a-49512273\">rejected<\/a> a similar U.S. request to send ground troops to Syria, where war has been ongoing since 2011. The German military currently provides reconnaissance jets, a refueling aircraft, and other noncombat military assistance to the fight against the Islamic State, according to German media.\r\n\r\nSome experts have recently <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2019\/07\/02\/fears-rise-of-an-isis-comeback\/\">warned<\/a> that the Islamic State could return stronger than ever, particularly if the U.S. withdraws from Syria without a commitment by allies to fill in the gap.\r\n\r\nWithout U.S. or allied support to sustain the security and stabilization gains the coalition has made, it\u2019s likely that the Islamic State will \u201cover time be able to prey upon local grievances,\u201d as it did in the lead-up its 2014 takeover of major cities, and eventually \u201creconstitute and be able to take territory,\u201d said Melissa Dalton, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe U.S. is repeating a critical mistake by deprioritizing this effort at a pivotal moment when our gains are at their most fragile,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2019\/07\/02\/fears-rise-of-an-isis-comeback\/\">warned<\/a> a new report by the Institute for the Study of War. \u201cThe U.S. must take immediate steps to dampen ISIS\u2019s resurgence in Iraq and Syria, including halting and reversing America\u2019s ongoing withdrawal from Syria.\u201d\r\n\r\nLondon and Paris operate covertly in Syria\u2014reports <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/20190223-usa-withdraw-troops-syria-trump-france-uk-military-kurds\">indicate<\/a> both have special forces in the country\u2014so it is unlikely any increase will be publicly announced. Alongside the United States, the U.K. and France took part in a series of air -and ship-based missile strikes against the Syrian regime in 2018 in response to the Douma chemical attack.\r\n\r\nThe British Embassy did not return a request for comment. A spokesperson for the French Embassy said, \u201cOfficially France has no troop on the ground in Syria,\u201d declining to comment further.\r\n\r\nBut in a rare public acknowledgement, James Jeffrey, the top U.S. envoy to Syria and the counter-Islamic State coalition, recently signaled that the administration has made progress getting coalition forces to contribute additional troops.\r\n\r\n\u201cOur expectation is the slack will be taken up by coalition forces\u2014and we are getting a very encouraging response from them,\u201d Jeffrey said in a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defenseone.com\/politics\/2019\/06\/exclusive-countries-may-begin-backfilling-american-ground-troops-syria-within-weeks-envoy-says\/158097\/?oref=d-mostread\">interview<\/a> with <em>Defense One<\/em>.\r\n\r\nBritain and France have also expressed interest in contributing to<a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2019\/06\/26\/pompeos-hollow-plan-to-beef-up-security-in-the-persian-gulf-us-iran\/\"> Sentinel<\/a>, a maritime partnership designed to enhance security for commercial ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz and other choke points, the U.S. administration official said. The State and Defense departments developed Sentinel as a response to increased Iranian aggression against oil tankers in the world\u2019s busiest shipping lanes.\r\n\r\nMost importantly, the U.S. administration is trying to convince the U.K., France, and other allies to contribute money for the Syria stabilization effort, the official said, pointing to \u201cdire\u201d conditions at the Rukban refugee camp, where the United Nations says about 45,000 people, mostly women and children, are trapped.\r\n\r\n<span class=\"image-credit\">Update, July 9, 2019: This article was updated to add comment from the French Embassy and further details on troop numbers in Syria.<\/span>","datePublished":"2019-07-09T09:47:27+00:00","dateModified":"2019-07-09T12:51:21+00:00","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2019\/07\/09\/britain-france-agree-to-send-additional-troops-increase-syria-us-withdrawal-uk\/","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Lara Seligman","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/author\/lara-seligman\/"},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/5542961.jpg?w=1500","height":1000,"width":1500},"isAccessibleForFree":"False","hasPart":{"@type":"WebPageElement","isAccessibleForFree":"False","cssSelector":".post-content-main"}}</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://s0.wp.com/wp-content/js/devicepx-jetpack.js?ver=201938"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var fpUtilsLoc = {"isDev":"","redirectUri":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/share_redirect\/"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://foreignpolicy.com/_static/??-eJylkEsOwjAMRC9EMOXPAnGWYEzrksZVxhRxeyKxYA2s7M17Yw89xsCWXbKTdzII6GpFtM1htKT8DMtFs6MIiINQmMBFx7qfpYuTWgHlOtvoanneY0Y/GyfJFyvEEd0XIniNZupBd9cESsYxwa3EVn7X/PfJpxs2u6mEyuJ9z2k4NpttBQ/79ap/AZ5hjFA="></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://cdn.taboola.com/libtrc/foreignpolicy/loader.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var FPMarketingSettings = {"_preview":null,"sponsored":null,"anon":null,"print":null,"premium":null,"__meta":{"disable_paywall":false,"localdata_prefix":"__FPMarketingTakeover_","tracking_prefix":""}}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var myFpAlertsLoc = {"isVIPEnv":"1"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var fpIPAccessState = {"printArchiveUrl":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/print-archive\/","ipAccessEnabled":"1","fpAnalyticsUrl":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/fp-insights\/"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var fpPaywallAfterArticle = {"links":["https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/subscribe"],"links_text":["<b>The story doesn\u2019t end here, but this month\u2019s free articles soon will. <\/b><br \/>Subscribe for unlimited content today."],"offers_text":["Subscribe for $2.25\/week"],"links_b":[""],"links_b_text":[""],"offers_b_text":[""]}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var fpPaywallPopup = {"links":{"links":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/subscribe","links_text":"<b>The story doesn\u2019t end here, but this month\u2019s free articles soon will. <\/b><br \/>Subscribe for unlimited content today.","offers_text":"Subscribe for $2.25\/week","links_b":"\/subscribe","links_b_text":"","offers_b_text":"","popup":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/subscribe","popupB":""}}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var fpPaywallRegwall = {"link":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190920104635\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/?modal=login"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ var zMoatADVERTISER = {"moatPassback":"editorial"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://foreignpolicy.com/_static/??-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"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20190920104635js_/https://stats.wp.com/e-201938.js" async="async" defer="defer"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> _stq = window._stq || []; _stq.push([ 'view', {v:'ext',j:'1:7.7.1',blog:'162972146',post:'972785',tz:'-4',srv:'foreignpolicy.com'} ]); _stq.push([ 'clickTrackerInit', '162972146', '972785' ]); </script>  <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ window.lightboxjs || function (c) { function g(b, d) { d && (d += (/\?/.test(d) ? "&" : "?") + "lv=1"); c[b] || function () { var i = window, h = document, j = b, g = h.location.protocol, l = "load", k = 0; (function () { function b() { a.P(l); a.w = 1; c[j]("_load") } c[j] = function () { function m() { m.id = e; return c[j].apply(m, arguments) } var b, e = ++k; b = this && this != i ? this.id || 0 : 0; (a.s = a.s || []).push([e, b, arguments]); m.then = function (b, c, h) { var d = a.fh[e] = a.fh[e] || [], j = a.eh[e] = a.eh[e] || [], f = a.ph[e] = a.ph[e] || []; b && d.push(b); c && j.push(c); h && f.push(h); return m }; return m }; var a = c[j]._ = {}; a.fh = {}; a.eh = {}; a.ph = {}; a.l = d ? d.replace(/^\/\//, (g == "https:" ? g : "http:") + "//") : d; a.p = { 0: +new Date }; a.P = function (b) { a.p[b] = new Date - a.p[0] }; a.w && b(); i.addEventListener ? i.addEventListener(l, b, !1) : i.attachEvent("on" + l, b); var q = function () { function b() { return ["<head></head><", c, ' onload="var d=', n, ";d.getElementsByTagName('head')[0].", d, "(d.", g, "('script')).", i, "='", a.l, "'\"></", c, ">"].join("") } var c = "body", e = h[c]; if (!e) return setTimeout(q, 100); a.P(1); var d = "appendChild", g = "createElement", i = "src", k = h[g]("div"), l = k[d](h[g]("div")), f = h[g]("iframe"), n = "document", p; k.style.display = "none"; e.insertBefore(k, e.firstChild).id = o + "-" + j; f.frameBorder = "0"; f.id = o + "-frame-" + j; /MSIE[ ]+6/.test(navigator.userAgent) && (f[i] = "javascript:false"); f.allowTransparency = "true"; l[d](f); try { f.contentWindow[n].open() } catch (s) { a.domain = h.domain, p = "javascript:var d=" + n + ".open();d.domain='" + h.domain + "';", f[i] = p + "void(0);" } try { var r = f.contentWindow[n]; r.write(b()); r.close() } catch (t) { f[i] = p + 'd.write("' + b().replace(/"/g, String.fromCharCode(92) + '"') + '");d.close();' } a.P(2) }; a.l && q() })() }(); c[b].lv = "1"; return c[b] } var o = "lightboxjs", k = window[o] = g(o); k.require = g; k.modules = c }({}); /*]]>*/</script><script type="text/javascript">window.lightboxlib = lightboxjs.require("lightboxlib", "//web.archive.org/web/20190920104635/https://www.lightboxcdn.com/vendor/044b8435-d6a0-427d-af56-eec8f6ae795a/lightbox.js?mb=" + (new Date().getTime()));</script>  <script type="text/javascript">window.NREUM||(NREUM={});NREUM.info={"beacon":"bam.nr-data.net","licenseKey":"f5b9626936","applicationID":"224917688","transactionName":"Z1cDYUFXXhVYWkINXF4dIFZHX18IFkpfClRcVw==","queueTime":0,"applicationTime":1285,"atts":"SxAUFwlNTUobWBReSE1P","errorBeacon":"bam.nr-data.net","agent":""}</script></body> </html>

CINXE.COM

Britain, France Agree to Send Additional Troops to Syria – Foreign Policy