President Donald Trump announced Sunday the appointment of Tom Barrack, the current US Ambassador to Turkey, as Special Presidential Envoy to both Syria and Iraq, a dual role that signals Washington's intensifying diplomatic engagement across the region.
Tom Barrack, Reuters/Bing Guan/Mena Today
President Donald Trump announced Sunday the appointment of Tom Barrack, the current US Ambassador to Turkey, as Special Presidential Envoy to both Syria and Iraq, a dual role that signals Washington's intensifying diplomatic engagement across the region.
"Tom Barrack has done an outstanding job," Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding that Barrack would "operate with the full backing of the United States Department of State" while retaining his post as Ambassador to Ankara.
The appointment reflects the growing strategic importance the Trump administration places on its relationships with both Damascus and Baghdad. "As we advance our strategic cooperation with the Governments of Syria and Iraq, our relationship with them continues to grow," the president noted.
The decision to keep Barrack simultaneously as Ambassador to Turkey is significant, given Ankara's pivotal role in Syrian affairs and its complex relationship with both Baghdad and Washington. Having a single envoy straddling all three capitals could streamline US diplomacy across a region where the interests of Turkey, Syria and Iraq are deeply intertwined.
The appointments take effect immediately.
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan will hold an urgent, high-level meeting under a joint defence pact to discuss ways to support the kingdom amid attacks by Yemen's Houthis, while Saudi's top religious authority told troops to be ready to lay down their lives to fight their Iran-aligned enemy.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said it was unrealistic to expect all countries to make the same progress on climate policy while inequalities in access to financing and technology persisted, adding he expected support from all nations for Turkey's COP31 Climate Summit action agenda.
Turkey and Iraq agreed on Wednesday for Turkish forces to hand over a military camp in northern Iraq to the Iraqi government gradually, they said after talks in New York, adding they also agreed to end the presence of "outlawed armed elements" in northern Iraq.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.
