[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 103 (Wednesday, June 19, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3822-S3824]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                 Syria

  Mrs. SHAHEEN. Mr. President, I am here today with my colleague 
Senator Graham to express my profound concern about the humanitarian 
tragedy that is currently unfolding in Idlib and northern Hama in 
Syria.
  It is hard to imagine that after 8 years of war, the greatest 
humanitarian disaster in Syria might still be before us, because 
clearly what we have seen in the past 8 years is a horrible 
humanitarian tragedy, a civil war that has involved, really, 
international players and that has led to the deaths of hundreds of 
thousands of Syrians and to the displacement of millions more. But with 
the escalated attacks that have occurred since late April, the Syrian 
regime and its Russian and Iranian allies are threatening a population 
of approximately 3 million there in Idlib. Of those 3 million, 1 
million are children. This is a region that is strained by hundreds of 
thousands of internally displaced people who have already fled from 
Assad's forces in other parts of Syria and neighboring countries. Just 
last Thursday alone, observers counted over 50 airstrikes in this 
region from early morning to early afternoon, and that was on top of 
artillery-shelling that was going on.
  Last December, Senator Graham and I came to the floor to warn about 
the dangers of President Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. troops from 
northeast Syria. I felt very strongly about that because last summer I 
had a chance to travel with Senator Graham to Syria, and we saw the 
important work that the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent 
Resolve and its Syrian partner forces were doing there. We saw 
communities like Manbij city that had recovered after 3 years of 
occupation by ISIS. We saw that Syrians were returning to that 
northeast region of Syria where it was peaceful, and they were growing 
crops again. We visited the market. We walked around without any fear 
that terrorists were going to bomb us.

  Local multiethnic residents saw the positive presence of U.S. troops 
and the value of U.S. global leadership. In fact, as we drove down the 
road and went by children, they flashed a ``V'' sign for ``victory'' 
when they saw it was the U.S. military.
  Together with our partners, the Syrian Democratic Forces, we made 
significant gains against ISIS, but that progress, sadly, is not 
guaranteed. Unfortunately, what we are seeing now in Idlib is the 
result of a confused U.S. strategy in Syria.
  When I spoke on the floor here in December, I warned that a hasty and 
ill-informed withdrawal could embolden ISIS and threaten the gains that 
U.S. partners have made. We discussed the fact that it would also cede 
the accomplishments of U.S. forces and our allies to Assad, Russia, and 
Iran.
  What we are seeing now in Idlib and northern Hama is Assad's and his 
foreign supporters' military solution. We are seeing indiscriminate 
bombing and shelling that destroys schools and hospitals and that sets 
fire to farmers' fields. The latest surge in violence has killed dozens 
of people. It has destroyed thousands of acres of crops. It has forced 
another 300,000 people to flee their homes.
  I would urge President Trump to listen to his military and diplomatic 
advisers and to recognize that an absence of U.S. leadership in Syria 
would give a free hand to Assad and to his Russian and Iranian allies, 
because clearly they are not our allies.
  The people of Syria face danger at the hands of ISIS and of their own 
government. Unfortunately, they have

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very few options left, but what they do have is the voice of the 
international community, and it is now up to us to stand against the 
carnage in Idlib once and for all.
  I urge President Trump to use U.S. leadership to oppose the 
humanitarian disaster that Syrian and Russian forces continue to create 
in Idlib and northern Hama and to work with our allies to truly bring 
an end to this civil war and this disaster that has been created, the 
humanitarian disaster that has been created.
  I yield to my colleague from South Carolina.
  Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, I want to compliment Senator Shaheen for 
doing her homework on Syria--traveling, understanding the strategic 
implications of losing in Syria for the United States and our allies.
  In New Hampshire and South Carolina, there is not a lot of talk about 
Syria. It is not that people don't care; it is just that we have our 
plate full here at home with all of our needs in our own backyard. The 
thing I can tell people throughout the country: You ignore these 
problems at our own peril.
  The wave of refugees that came out of Syria when the civil war first 
began is going to replicate itself--or I guess we can all sit on the 
sidelines and watch 3 million people be killed. I hope we don't do 
that.
  Idlib is a province in northwestern Syria. The opposition is 
basically in a corner near the border with Turkey. Assad, with the help 
of Iran and mostly Russia, is trying to break their will and literally 
destroy them.
  Within this group of people--about 3\1/2\ million--there are some 
really hardcore al-Qaida types--Al-Nusra, all kinds of names associated 
with the groups--but they are radical Sunni Islamists, and they would 
bring ISIS back roaring. We don't want them to win the day, and we sure 
as heck don't want Iran to control Syria.
  I think it would be a huge mistake for the United States to let Assad 
prevail in this war, and let me tell you why: It never ends with him. 
Every radical Sunni Islamist group in the world will use Assad's 
presence in Syria as a recruiting tool. He is a proxy of Iran. Without 
Iran, there would be no Assad. So you create a great recruiting 
opportunity for radical Islam if you let Assad prevail.
  On multiple occasions, our country has said Assad must go. Why? 
Because he is a war criminal. He has lost all legitimacy. Russia will 
have basically trumped the United States--no pun intended--in the 
backyard of the Middle East, Syria.
  President Trump, to his credit, changed his decision to withdraw all 
forces in northeastern Syria and have a holding force with more 
international involvement to prevent ISIS from coming back in the 
Manbij area, making sure that Iran doesn't come down and take over, 
with Assad, that part of Syria and that Turkey doesn't come into 
northeastern Syria to deal with the Syrian Democratic Forces, the 
Kurdish elements of the YPG.
  A small American contingent force has brought some stability to 
northeastern Syria. Our Kurdish allies who stepped up to the plate feel 
like they are in a better spot--we have to realize that Turkey has a 
legitimate concern about the YPG elements--but to keep everybody apart 
and make sure ISIS doesn't come back.
  Nobody is talking about Idlib. President Trump, to his credit, did 
tweet on June 2--just a few weeks ago--``Hearing word that Russia, 
Syria and, to a lesser extent, Iran, are bombing the hell out of Idlib 
Province in Syria, and indiscriminately killing many innocent 
civilians. The World is watching this butchery. What is the purpose, 
what will it get you? STOP!'' Good tweet.
  The only way it is going to stop is for Russia and Iran to pay a 
price for helping Assad. It is Russian jets with Syrian jets that are 
indiscriminately bombing civilians in Idlib.
  If Idlib falls and these people flush out of Syria, you are going to 
have another wave of refugees coming to Turkey, which is saturated, and 
eventually Turkey is going to open up the floodgates back into Europe, 
and we are going to repeat this all over again.
  To my European friends and allies, you have been reluctant--except 
the French and the British--to help us in northeastern Syria with a 
holding force. How many times do you have to see the same movie to 
understand we need to do something different?
  What do you tell the European population? That we don't have the will 
to put a few thousand troops in Syria to make sure that we are not 
flooded in Europe with people fleeing for their lives? It just never 
ceases to amaze me how quickly we forget the lessons of the past.
  As to Idlib, they have broken the agreement we had. Turkey, to its 
credit, has been trying to find a political solution in that part of 
Syria.
  Senator Shaheen and I both know that the only way you end this war is 
through a political negotiation in Geneva. By having some American 
forces with our partners in northeastern Syria, we have leverage over 
the outcome. If we could stand Assad down in Idlib, we would have more 
leverage to allow the Syrian people to heal their own country.
  As these attacks escalate--and they will--the President and his team, 
in conjunction with the civilized world, needs to come up with an Idlib 
plan.
  What I want to do with Senator Shaheen is come up with some sanctions 
or some policies directed at the impending disaster called Idlib. I 
want us to put on the record our objection to what Russia, Iran, and 
Assad are doing and try to craft some consequences and actually work 
with the administration to stop what will be inevitable if we don't 
send the right signal, which will be the slaughter of hundreds of 
thousands of innocent people, a new wave of refugees, and putting 
radical Sunni Islam on steroids, because they will come to the fight if 
you don't.
  So here is your choice, to the free world: If you don't get involved 
in Syria and try to end this madness, radical Sunni Islam will gladly 
take your place, and that is not a good outcome. There is no winning in 
that situation. If Assad wins, we lose. If the radical Sunni Islamist 
al-Nusra types win, we lose.
  The good news is, the best way to win is to help the Syrian people. 
The Syrian people don't want to be dictated anymore by Assad, which is 
how this all started. They are tired of living under his control. They 
are not radical people by nature. They are not turning to ISIS as the 
answer to Assad. Give them a choice. It is in our interest to be 
involved to some extent.
  We are not the world's policemen, but we are the glue that holds the 
world together, and Syria can be put back together only through peace 
negotiations where the parties have some leverage over their 
adversaries. It is not just a humanitarian crisis in the making. This 
is going to change the balance and the power in Syria and the Mideast 
in a very bad way. You are going to have a never-ending conflict 
between Iranian proxies and radical Sunni Islamic groups in Syria 
unless you defang both. Doing nothing sounds good on paper, until you 
realize what happens when you ignore a problem.
  I will end with this. On September 10, 2001, America did not have one 
soldier in Afghanistan, not one dime of aid to Afghanistan. We didn't 
even have an ambassador to Afghanistan. We just watched as the Taliban 
took over. They put women in soccer stadiums and killed them for sport 
because they wore the burka too short, and they blew up statues of 
Buddha. We were under the illusion, well, that is their problem, not 
ours. Well, it eventually became our problem because the people doing 
this stuff to women and religious artifacts of other cultures are 
compelled by God to deal with us.
  If you think leaving them alone ends this conflict, you don't 
understand what the conflict is about. They are driven by a religious 
ideology that has no place for anybody in this room, our friends in 
Israel, or moderate Muslims. So you can deal with them now or you can 
deal with them later.
  Assad is in a different category but is just as evil and uses the 
same kind of butchery. I am here to tell you--to Europe: You had better 
up your game when it comes to Idlib because you are going to pay a 
heavy price.
  To the Trump administration, I really appreciate what you have done 
in northeastern Syria. I appreciate the tweet of the President on June 
2. But we have to do more than tweet. We, in

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the Senate, need to offer some assistance to the administration and our 
allies, and, working with Senator Shaheen, we will try to find a way to 
move forward. I appreciate her interests.
  There is not a whole lot of upside in talking about things like this 
in modern American politics. But you are always going to be viewed well 
by history when you address a problem, when you stand up against evil, 
and when you try to do something about it. It may not be popular for 
the moment, but time will prove you right.
  I thank Senator Shaheen.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Ms. ERNST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.