[NEWS] Breaking with Trump, U.S. Republicans press for response to Turkey over Syria – Loganspace AI

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Republicans condemned President Donald Trump’s Syria coverage on Wednesday after Turkey launched a armed forces operation against Kurdish fighters, a rare fracture from the White House that had some calling for “devastating” sanctions against the NATO ally.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, on the total a vocal Trump ally, has repeatedly criticized Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from northeastern Syria and unveiled a framework for sanctions on Turkey with Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen.

Their proposed sanctions would aim the property of senior officials including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, mandate sanctions over Turkey’s safe of a Russian S-400 missile defense procedure and impose visa restrictions.

They additionally would sanction any individual who conducted armed forces transactions with Turkey or supported vitality production for utilize by its armed forces, bar U.S. armed forces assistance to Turkey and require a report on Erdogan’s derive fee and property.

“I am gratified to enjoy reached a bipartisan agreement with Senator Van Hollen on excessive sanctions against Turkey for their invasion of Syria,” Graham said in a assertion.

“Whereas the Administration refuses to act against Turkey, I ask vital bipartisan toughen,” he said.

The Turkish armed forces and Syrian riot allies launched an operation in Syria on Wednesday with air strikes. Erdogan said the operation aimed to eliminate a “terror hall” alongside the Turkish border.

Ankara has branded the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia as terrorists thanks to their ties to militants who enjoy waged an insurgency in Turkey. But many members of Congress, and U.S. officials, credit the Kurds with combating alongside American troops to defeat Islamic Voice militants.

Some House Republicans joined within the condemnation.

Representative Liz Cheney, who chairs the House Republican Convention, said Trump’s decision “is having sickening and predictable consequences.” Announcing his action aided U.S. adversaries “Russia, Iran and Turkey,” she said lawmakers would respond.

“Congress must and can act to restrict the catastrophic impact of this decision,” Cheney said in a assertion.

Other Republicans issued statements questioning what they described as Trump’s decision to “abandon” the Kurds.

The White House did now not reply to a ask for declare.

FIRST VETO OVERRIDE?

Senator Susan Collins known as it “terribly unwise,” and added, “Nowadays we’re seeing the outcomes of that horrible decision. If the reviews of Turkish strikes in Syria are pleasing, I danger our allies the Kurds would possibly well very smartly be slaughtered.”

In an interview with the media outlet Axios, Graham predicted that ample Senate Republicans would aid sanctions legislation to override a that you just may possibly keep in mind Trump veto.

If that is so, it’d be the major veto override of Trump’s presidency after too few Republicans joined Democrats to muster the two-thirds majorities within the Senate and House of Representatives to override his first five.

“The president’s doing this positively against all and sundry else’s suggestion,” Graham said. “He’ll get 100% of the credit if he knows one thing the rest of us don’t. And he’s going to get 100% of the blame. There’ll be no middle floor.”

In a assertion on Twitter on Tuesday, Graham warned Ankara of “sanctions from hell” if it moved into northern Syria. “Wide, deep, and devastating sanctions,” he said.

Senator Jim Risch, the Republican chairman of the International Members of the family Committee, said Turkey’s “aggressive actions” raised concerns and risked a precipitous decline in relations with Washington.