OF THE DIFFERENT FORCES PILING

INTO THIS PART OF NORTHERN

SYRIA.

ERIC?

ERIC: BENJAMIN, THANK YOU SO

MUCH.

ARTHEL: WE'RE GOING TO BRING IN

FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT

SECRETARY OF STATE, JOEL RUBIN.

WHAT IS TURKEY DOING, WHAT IS

RUSSIA DOING?

>> YEAH, ARTHEL, TURKEY IS ABOUT

TO ENGAGE IN ETHNIC CLEANSING,

AND RUSSIA IS BACKING THEM UP.

AND IT'S REALLY TRAGIC BECAUSE

WE HAD OUR FOOT ON THE NECK,

ESSENTIALLY, OF ISIS.

WE DEFEATED THEM, AND NOW DONALD

TRUMP IS TAKING IT OFF.

AND I UNDERSTAND WHY HE CLAIMS

HE WANTS TO BRING OUR TROOPS

HOME, BUT AS YOU HEARING FROM

THIS REPORT AS WELL, OUR TROOPS

AREN'T COMING HOME.

THEY'RE GOING TO IRAQ, THEY'RE

STAYING IN SYRIA, AND TURKEY NOW

FEELS FREE REIN TO ENGAGE IN

MASSACRING OUR KURDISH ALLIES

WHO HELPED US DEFEAT ISIS, AND

IT'S A REAL TRAGEDY.

ARTHEL: YEAH.

AND THE TROOPS THAT WENT TO

IRAQ, IRAQ SAYING YOU DIDN'T ASK

ME IF YOU COULD BRING YOUR

TROOPS OVER THERE.

YOU'VE GOT ONE MONTH TO GET THEM

OUT OF HERE.

MEANWHILE, I WANT TO SHOW YOU A

TWEET FROM BRETT McGURK,

FORMER SPECIAL PRESIDENTIAL

ENVOY TO THE MIDDLE EAST, AS YOU

KNOW, TO DEFEAT ISIS.

HE WORKED UNDER PRESIDENTS BUSH,

OBAMA AND TRUMP.

SYRIA, LAST 24 HOURS, U.S.

MILITARY RETURNS TO GUARD OIL

FIELDS.

THOUSANDS OF REFUGEES STREAM IN

OTHER DIRECTION INTO NORTHERN

IRAQ.

ERDOGAN THREATENS AGAIN TO DO

THE CLEANSING WORK IN KURDISH

AREAS.

U.S. FORCES LEFT TO RUSSIA AND

ASSAD.

INCOHERENTMENT SO, JOEL --

INCOHERENT.

SO, JOEL, HAS PRESIDENT TRUMP

RELINQUISHED ALL U.S. POWER TO

COMBAT OR OFFSET THE RAPID

DAMAGE BEING DONE BY ERDOGAN AND

PUTIN?

>> HE HAS.

I HAVE TO SAY IT STRAIGHT LIKE

YOUD ASKED, HE ABSOLUTELY HAS.

HE COMPOUNDED IT NOT JUST BY

GIVING THE GREEN LIGHT TO

ERDOGAN TO INVADE NORTHERN SYRIA

AND HAVE OUR TROOPS WHO WERE

ACTING AS A BUFFER, THEY WERE

PEACEKEEPERS.

THEY WERE NOT ENGAGED IN ACTIVE

COMBAT.

WHEN HE REMOVED THEM, HE GAVE

THE GREEN LIGHT TO TURKEY.

BUT EVEN THIS WEEK HE FALSELY

CLAIMED THAT THE CEASEFIRE WAS

HOLDING AND HE WOULD, THEREFORE,

RELAX AND TAKE AWAY AMERICAN

SANCTIONS ON TURKEY, THEREBY

ESSENTIALLY TELLING ERDOGAN

YOU'RE FREE TO DO WHAT YOU WANT.

AND NOW ERDOGAN MADE A DEAL WITH

RUSSIA, RUSSIA IS THE BIG POWER,

AND AT A STRATEGIC LEVEL THAT

MEANS NOW WE'D HAVE TO TAKE ON

RUSSIA TO GET BACK IN, AND

THAT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN.

WE REALLY HAVE VERY FEW LEVERS

TO INFLUENCE WHAT'S HAPPENING ON

THE GROUND.

ARTHEL: MEANWHILE, PRESIDENT

TRUMP IS SAYING U.S. TROOPS WILL

GO BACK IN TO PROTECT THE OIL

FIELDS IN EASTERN SYRIA.

HOW MANY TROOPS WOULD REALLY BE

NEEDED FOR THIS, AND WILL THEY

TRY TO REENLIST HELP FROM THE

KURDS?

>> THIS IS THE HIGHLY DEBATABLE,

AND THIS IS THE DANGER WITH THE

WAY THAT THE PRESIDENT ENACTED

THIS POLICY.

HE DID NOT PLAN IT OUT.

THERE WAS NO INTERAGENCY PROCESS

WITH THE DoD TO SECURE OIL

FIELDS.

SO NOW THEY'RE GOING IN, BUT

IT'S NOT EVEN CLEAR THAT THAT'S

A BIG PRIORITY, QUITE FRANKLY.

OIL FIELDS IN THE PAST, THEY

WERE USED TO FUND ISIS, THEN WE

DESTROYED THEM THROUGH AIR

RAIDS.

IT'S NOT QUITE SURE WHAT THE

ACTUAL PURPOSE IS.

HE MAY FIND IT ATTRACTIVE, THERE

ARE OTHERS WHO WANT US TO CREEP

BACK IN AND THINK THAT'S A WAY

TO BEGIN TO DO THAT.

BUT FROM A POLICY PERSPECTIVE,

THE OIL FIELDS ARE VERY

INSIGNIFICANT, QUITE FRANKLY.

CERTAINLY TO OUR OIL USE HERE AT

HOME.

THE BIG ISSUE IS TURKEY'S

INCURSION NOW INTO AN ETHNIC

CLEANSING OPERATION AGAINST THE

KURDS AND RUSSIA'S STRONGHOLD

RIGHT THERE.

THOSE ARE THE BIG ISSUES THAT

WE'RE NOT GRAPPLING WITH AND

THAT WE SHOULD BE.

ARTHEL: SO FAR YOU'VE GOT 900

SQUARE MILES THAT HAVE BEEN

SEIZED BY TURKISH AND RUSSIAN

FORCES, 160,000 KURDISH

CIVILIANS HAVE BEEN DISPLACED.

SO WILL THE KURDS, ALL ALL

DIVISIONS, BE SLAUGHTERED OR IS

THERE REALLY A DEAL WITH THE

DEVIL THAT CAN SAVE THEM?

>> WELL, THE KURDS THOUGHT THEY

HAD A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL, AND

THAT DEVIL BEING ASSAD OF SYRIA.

AND THEY THOUGHT HE WOULD

PROVIDE PROTECTION, BUT THAT

PROTECTION HASN'T COME.

RUSSIA CONTROLS ASSAD.

WILL RUSSIA STEP IN AND

POTENTIALLY PROTECT THEM?

BUT THE BIG QUESTION HOVERING

OVER ALL OF THIS IS THEN WHAT?

WHAT ABOUT THE THREE AND A HALF

MILLION SYRIANS SITTING IN

SOUTHERN TURKEY?

WILL THEY BE PUSHED INTO THOSE

CLEARED AREAS, CREATING A

VIOLATION OF THE GENEVA

CONVENTIONS OF A MASS POPULATION

TRANSFER IN THE PROCESS?

NONE OF THESE ARE ADDRESSED.

BUT WE NEED TO HAVE A ROBUST,

FRANKLY, ROBUST INTERNATIONAL

DIPLOMATIC DISCUSSION NOW WITH

URGENCY TO INSURE THAT THESE

ISSUES GET DISCUSSED AND

RESOLVED.

BUT THAT TIME WAS BEFORE WE

LEFT.

WE STILL HAVE TO TRY TO DO IT,

BUT THOSE ARE THE ISSUES RIGHT

NOW THAT ARE VERY SERIOUS AND,

YES, I THINK AN ETHNIC CLEANSING

IS VERY MUCH IN THE OFFING

POTENTIALLY FROM TURKEY.

ARTHEL: FINALLY, JOEL WITH, WHAT

ABOUT ISIS?

WILL ISIS REGROUP AGAIN?

NOT NECESSARILY AS A CALIPHATE,

BUT ENOUGH TO SERIOUSLY THREATEN

THE U.S. AND EUROPEAN ALLIES?

>> SO THINK OF IT, IF YOU'RE THE

KURDS WHO HAVE BEEN FIGHTING

ISIS AND THEY LOST 31,000

PLUS -- 11,000 PLUS SOLDIERS AT

OUR REQUEST WHEN THEY COMBATED

ISIS FIGHTERS, THEY WERE THE

ONES PROTECTING AND GUARDING

AGAINST ISIS.

NOW THEY'RE DEFENDING FOR THEIR

LIVES, THEY'RE PROTECTING THEIR

FAMILIES.

ISIS IS THE LAST THING ON THEIR

MIND.

AND WE ALSO HAVE MANY PROBLEMS

WITH TURKEY RELATED TO ISIS OVER

THE YEARS, AND THE TURKS DID NOT

VIEW ISIS AS THEIR THREAT, THEY

VIEW KURDISH MILITIAS AS THEIR

THREAT.

ISIS, THEY'RE NOT GOING TO BE

GUARDED BY THE KURDS.

SO WHAT HAPPENS THEN?

WE HAVE ISIS FREE.

ARTHEL: AND THEY'RE NOT JUST,