WASHINGTON: US Sena­tors voted across party lines on Monday evening to app­rove an amendment that rejects President Donald Trump’s plan to pull troops out of Afghanistan and Syria.

The resolution, adopted by a 70-26 vote, stresses that the United States “faces continuing threats from terrorist groups operating in Syria and Afghanistan and that’s why a precipitous withdrawal of US forces from either country could put at risk hard-won gains and US national security”.

There are 53 Republicans in the 100-seat Senate, but the resolution was easily adopted because 46 of them voted for the amendment, sending a clear message that they are ready to vote against a Republican president too if they disagree with him on a particular issue.

Twenty-three Democrats and an independent senator also voted for the resolution. The amendment, opposed by only three of the 53 Senate Republicans, will eventually be incorporated into a broader security bill on the Middle East.

President Trump, however, told an American news channel on Sunday that such rebukes could not force him to change his mind. Reminded that a vast majority of Senate Republicans opposed his withdrawal plans, Trump said in the 2016 election, he “ran against 17 Republicans … and won very easily”.

Speaking on the Senate floor on Monday, Senator McConnell emphasised the need to use both diplomatic and military options to promote US national interests.

“When America’s national security and vital interests are at stake, some circumstances require not only the use of important diplomatic tools but also direct involvement from the United States,” he said. “That’s why I introduced (this) amendment – so the Senate can speak clearly and directly about the importance of our nation’s ongoing missions in Afghanistan and Syria.”

He said this was the “time to reaffirm our commitment to this vision and to the men and women fighting on the ground to uphold it. I was glad to see a big bipartisan majority of this body vote to advance my amendment”.

In a surprise move in December, Trump tweeted plans to recall half of the 14,000 US troops from Afghanistan and all of the 2,000 troops out of Syria, arguing that America cannot stay engaged in “unending wars”.

Published in Dawn, February 6th, 2019