US forces have completed 99% of their mission in fighting ISIS, says special envoy to Syria

By Muhammed Karabacak and Serdar Dincel

DAMASCUS / ISTANBUL (AA) - Tom Barrack, US ambassador to Türkiye and special envoy to Syria, said President Donald Trump assigned the US army in Syria with a single goal of fighting ISIS (Daesh) terror group and the US forces have successfully completed 99% of this mission.

The basis of the US military and political presence in Syria is to ensure the security of the people of the region and eliminate the threat of terrorism, Barrack told Syria TV in an interview published on the channel's Facebook account on Thursday.

Trump's goal is not to be the government in Syria, but to "enable the government," he said, adding: "Good way for you to think about it is we wanna be the dessert, the baklava."

Referring to the negotiation process between Syria and Israel, Barrack said "America's role is simply to start having a dialogue."

He added that the first step towards peace between Syria and Israel could be a non-aggression agreement, followed by mutual border agreements.