Thread by @MikeyKayNYC

Thread| U.S in #Syria.

1. As a senior military operator, it was my job to take higher intent from the Chiefs, and turn that into a Concept of Operations (ConOps) on the ground, that worked towards their political/strategic military direction.

https://twitter.com/jenanmoussa/status/1227550975000535040

2. Assessing risk for certain Courses of Action (COAs) was critical as a Commander. But knowing the mission, and understanding the positive consequences of succeeding in your mission made the risks more acceptable.

3. If you asked the Chairman of the Jt Chiefs what the current Course of Action was for U.S troops in Syria, he should be able to tell you in a heartbeat. Likewise w/ the ‘Mission’, the ‘Political Intent,’ the ‘Centre of Gravity,’ and the ´Military & Political’ ‘Endstates’

4. If I had the opportunity to embed w/ U.S Forces at the moment, I’d ask the Commander what:

•- his Mission was.
•- what the military end state was.
•- what were his critical vulnerabilities.
•- his risks.
•- and if these had changed since the order to withdraw in Oct 2019

5. The latest I can gather from Trump’s stated Intent in Syria is:

•- secure an expanse of oil fields across eastern Syria.

apnews.com/251062e322ab4b…

6. Endangering U.S troops to secure Syrian oil requires there to be a comprehensive and impactful Course of Action (COA), and out of that should drop a Campaign Plan, and out of that drops a Concept of Operations.

7. So by securing Syrian oil fields, what’s Trump’s Political Endstate?

•- deny Assad a crucial source of income?
•- guarantee Syrian Kurds and the SDF a valuable source of income?
•- deny Iran a land corridor from the Persian Gulf to the Med? (Most Likely)

8. ‘Chief Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said Thursday the U.S. mission is focused on two things: IS from recapturing the oil fields and enabling the SDF to maintain a revenue source to continue fighting the militants.’ #Syria

apnews.com/d11a96e9210845…

9. But according to Trump, Pence et al, ISIS is ‘defeated’?

And if ISIS is defeated, why is the Pentagon spox saying they need to provide the SDF w/ a source of revenue to keep fighting ISIS?

And if Trump is secretly concerned about ISIS, why did he hand the SDF out to dry!

10. Whatever the reason, these questions should be put to the Trump admin w/ tenacity & resilience, as it’s U.S troops lives on the line - who are in country, day in, day out, at risk, in a area of operations that finds the U.S w/ fewer and fewer allies. #Syria

11. I was prepared to give my life for Queen & country, to defend the national interests of the U.K & NATO. Iraq 2003 retrospectively destroyed my trust in the political decision making process. Thousands of U.S/U.K lives were lost subsequently in that war.

12. I’ve no problem in utilising a very capable military to defend sovereign interests. But we owe it to our troops to ensure that if they do give the ultimate sacrifice, the most senior of politicians can look the family in the eye & say it was for an important cause. End.

13. This latest firefight involving U.S troops at a Syrian checkpoint is all you need to know about the risk that U.S troops face while trying to execute a mission to ‘secure E.Syrian oilfields.’

https://twitter.com/jenanmoussa/status/1227581513920892928

14. This is known as a Troops In Contact (TIC). Likely be a U.S Joint Terminal Air Controller (JTAC) embedded w/ this patrol that can, if necessary, call in close air support.

https://twitter.com/jenanmoussa/status/1227581513920892928?s=21

15. Commanders thought process?

•- calling in airstrikes risk U.S collateral.
•- civilian collateral could also escalate the contact.
•- gradually escalate? Show of Force?
•- what Quick Reaction Force reinforcements are available to the commander & how far away are they?