Saudi Arabia Agrees to Finance Rebuilding of Syria - Trump

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US President Donald Trump said in a statement on Monday that Saudi Arabia has agreed to pay for the reconstruction of Syria rather than the United States financing the reconstruction of that country.

"Saudi Arabia has now agreed to spend the necessary money needed to help rebuild Syria, instead of the United States," Trump said via Twitter.

Trump has welcomed Riyadh's decision, adding that it is "nice when immensely wealthy countries help rebuild their neighbors rather than a Great Country, the US, that is 5000 miles away."

READ MORE: Macron Voices Deep Regret Over US Decision to Withdraw Troops From Syria

The US president's comment comes after, on Wednesday, he announced that the United States would withdraw its roughly 2,000 troops from Syria since the Daesh* terror group had been defeated. However, the White House later clarified the decision does not mean the US-led international coalition's fight against the Daesh has ended.

Democratic and Republican lawmakers in the US Congress who have supported US military engagement and intervention throughout the world have criticized Trump’s decision, saying that a US troop withdrawal from Syria will lead to the reemergence of the Daesh and aid Russia, Turkey and Iran fulfilling their interests in the region.

*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist group banned in Russia