Congressman Lamborn Cosponsors Bills to Sanction Turkey

Washington D.C. - Congressman Lamborn cosponsored two bills to sanction Turkey for their unprovoked aggression against our Syrian Defense Forces (SDF) partners, issuing the following statement:

"While I am hopeful about the temporary ceasefire negotiated between Vice President Pence and Turkish President Erdogan, I am still concerned about the future long-term stability of the region. Our Kurdish partners, fighting alongside American forces, spearheaded the fight against ISIS and Islamic fascism. Our joint efforts concluded with the collapse of the Islamic State in Syria. I share President Trump's desire to avoid being stuck in endless foreign wars with no viable strategy for a beneficial resolution. However, a premature withdrawal from Syria could sow chaos and severely hamper our ability to shape events on the ground in a manner favorable to the U.S. I fear that, in a worst-case scenario, the Turks turn a blind eye to Islamist factions within the Free Syrian Army and the region becomes an incubator once again for radical Islamic terrorism. I also have concerns about how trustworthy President Erdogan is. I am glad the United States Congress has put politics aside and come together to sanction the Turkish government for their attacks against the SDF. I was especially pleased to see the Democrats speak out after remaining silent during the Obama administration while 400,000 Syrians were killed. Nevertheless, I do not believe America should be the world's police force and will continue working with the President and his administration to ensure our focus remains on the security of our homeland and our core national interests, as detailed in his excellent National Defense Strategy."

Congressman Lamborn, a long-time supporter of closer ties with our Kurdish partners in the Kurdish Regional Government of Iraq and the Syrian Defense Forces of the Rojava, signed on to cosponsor H.R. 4695 and H.R. 4692 this week. The text of each, authored by Representative Cheney and Representatives Engel and McCaul, respectively, can be found here and here. Congressman Lamborn also led a bipartisan letter to President Trump in December 2018 in which he urged caution in too precipitous a withdrawal from Syria, which can be found here.