“We believe American troops should stay for at least the mid-term, if not the long-term,” he said.
The presence of the troops, which have a remote base at Deir Ezzor in eastern Syria, will also allow Washington to have a say in Syria’s future, the crown prince said.
“If you take those troops out from east Syria, you will lose that checkpoint,” Prince Mohammed said. “And this corridor could create a lot of things in the region.”
There are currently about 2,000 US troops working with Syrian Democratic Forces to re-capture territory from ISIS.
The crown prince’s remarks came just hours after Trump told a cheering crowd in Ohio that US troops will soon be pulled out.
“By the way, we’re knocking the hell out of ISIS,” Trump said. “We’re coming out of Syria very soon. Let the other people take care of it now, very soon. Very soon, we’re coming out.”
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