he details of the decision to end the program — how it will be implemented, which groups exactly will lose access to resources — aren’t clear. The policy change “will not affect a separate Pentagon-led effort” to defeat the Islamic State in Syria according to the report.That suggests it might not pay dividends in the relationship with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is chiefly angry about U.S. support for Syrian Kurds in the fight against ISIS. Turkey believes the Syrian Kurds are affiliated with a group of Turkish separatists that have been designated a foreign terrorist organization by the State Department.”They give support to terrorist groups including [ISIS and the Syrian Kurds],” Erdogan said in December. “It’s very clear. We have confirmed evidence, with pictures, photos and videos.”

Relatively moderate rebel groups and Kurdish fighters have been the main U.S. proxies in the fight against ISIS and to prevent Russia and Iran from controlling critical swathes of Syrian territory that could be used to threaten Israel.

“This is a force that we can’t afford to completely abandon,” Goldenberg told the Post. “If they are ending the aid to the rebels altogether, then that is a huge strategic mistake.”

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/trump-to-stop-cia-arming-rebels-in-syria-report/article/2629155