ISIS rising in Syria is a threat to our American way of life

One troubled area that deserves a renewed focus is northeastern Syria. The looming problem there involves national security concerns of our Turkish ally.

Thankfully, President Donald Trump destroyed the caliphate in Syria and Iraq, and the world is a much better place because of this action. The Biden administration has acted effectively in continuing the gains made in the region by leaving approximately 900 U.S. forces in Syria, most in the northeast, to work with local fighters forces to ensure ISIS does not reemerge as they once were. But this is complicated, for a very specific reason.

The looming problem in northeastern Syria involves the legitimate national security concerns of our Turkish North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ally. The Syrian Democratic Forces, the primary force relied upon to destroy the ISIS caliphate in Syria, along with American support, is predominantly made up of a Kurdish group known as The People’s Protection Units (YPG). Turkey views the YPG as a threat to their national security given their reported connection with another group known as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a terrorist organization under Turkish and U.S. law.