Analysis: Pullout from Syria weakens US hand in the Mideast and boosts Russia

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw troops from Syria robs the United States of key leverage in the Middle East, may clear the way for a return of Islamic extremist groups and boosts an expanding Russia.

Numerous foreign policy experts and former officials and diplomats branded the decision a mistake, in part because the defeat of the Islamic State militancy - Trump's stated reason to have troops in Syria - is not yet complete or, to use the administration's word, "enduring."

"Like walking away from a forest fire that is still smoldering underfoot," said retired Adm. James Stavridis, former NATO commander.

For many, the withdrawal also represents the United States ceding its traditional dominance in the Middle East. Already, Iran, Russia and Turkey were months into negotiations