US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis resigns over policy differences with Trump
Washington, Dec 21 : Defence Secretary James Mattis has resigned, telling Donald Trump in a letter that he should choose a person who is more in tune with his world view after the US president decided to withdraw American troops from Syria.
Trump announced the resignation in two tweets on Thursday evening, and said Mattis, will leave at the end of February. Mattis was a great advocate of India-US defence relationship.
According to reports, 68-year-old Mattis went to the White House on Thursday afternoon in a last attempt to convince Trump to keep US troops in Syria. He was rebuffed, and told the president that he was resigning as a result.
In his extraordinary resignation letter, Mattis told Trump he had "the right to have a Secretary of Defence whose views are better aligned with yours".
Mattis' resignation letter, a Pentagon spokeswoman said was hand-delivered to the president.
In the letter, Mattis told Trump it was the "right time" for him to step down.
"The end date for my tenure is February 28, 2019, a date that should allow sufficient time for a successor to be nominated and confirmed as well as to make sure the Department's interests are properly articulated and protected at upcoming events to include Congressional posture hearings and the NATO Defense Ministerial meeting in February," Mattis said.
The Pentagon chief did not mention if he was resigning specifically over the troop withdrawal decision, which has surprised US allies and several lawmakers.
Analysts say the withdrawal of troops will please US enemies by clearing the way for Syria's Bashar al-Assad regime, Russia and Iran. Mattis had warned that removing ground forces from the Middle Eastern country would be a "strategic blunder". Currently, there are about 2,000 US forces in Syria.
After Mattis sent his resignation, Trump said, "General Jim Mattis will be retiring, with distinction, at the end of February, after having served my administration as secretary of defense for the past two years.
"During Jim's tenure, tremendous progress has been made, especially with respect to the purchase of new fighting...," he said on Twitter.
Mattis and Trump reportedly have had differences on several foreign policy matters, including Syria and Afghanistan. Reports say the president is also considering a drawdown of US troops from the 17-year-long conflict in Afghanistan.
Mattis said in his resignation letter that he believes the US must be resolute in its approach to countries whose strategic interests are increasingly in tension with America's.
"My views on treating allies with respect and also being clear-eyed about both malign actors and strategic competitors are strongly held and informed by over four decades of immersion in these issues," he stressed.
"We must do everything possible to advance an international order that is most conducive to our security, prosperity and values, and we are strengthened in this effort by the solidarity of our alliances," he added.
Mattis is the latest in long-list of senior Trump administration officials to leave or be removed. In March, Trump fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
On Thursday, Trump praised Mattis for his service and for being a "great help" to him in getting allies and other countries "to pay their share of military obligations".
He said a new secretary of defence will be named shortly.
Defending his decision on Thursday to withdraw US troops from Syria, Trump tweeted that the US does not want to be the "policeman" of the Middle East. In his resignation letter, Mattis said, "Like you, I have said from the beginning that the armed forces of the United States should not be the policeman of the world.
"Instead, we must use all tools of American power to provide for the common defence, including providing effective leadership to our alliances."
Mattis' celebrated military career spanned four decades. Prior to joining Trump's Cabinet, the four-star general was the head of US Central Command, which directs military operations and oversaw the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He was known before and during his White House tenure for his even-keeled demeanour and strategic mind and is broadly held in high esteem among Republicans and Democrats alike.
"I'm shaken by the news because of the patriot that Secretary Mattis is," said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.
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Indian mobile hospital treats over 2,200 cyclone-hit people as New Delhi ramps up relief efforts in
Colombo (PTI): A mobile hospital set up by India in Sri Lanka has provided medical care to over 2,200 people affected by Cyclone Ditwah, as New Delhi ramped up its assistance to the flood-ravaged island nation with engineering support and delivery of fresh relief consignments, the Indian mission here said on Sunday.
Sri Lanka has been grappling with widespread flooding, landslides and severe infrastructure collapse triggered by the cyclone, leaving several districts isolated and severely straining the country's disaster-response capacity.
At least 627 people have been killed and 190 remain missing as of Sunday noon due to catastrophic floods and landslides caused by extreme weather conditions since November 16.
Sharing a social media post by the Ministry of External Affairs on its X handle, the Indian High Commission said a field hospital set up by India in Mahiyanganaya near Kandy has provided medical care to more than 2,200 people affected by the cyclone since December 5.
The hospital has also performed 67 minor procedures and three surgeries, it said. The field hospital was airlifted to Sri Lanka by an IAF C-17 aircraft along with a 78-member Indian medical team on Tuesday.
In another post, the mission said Indian Army engineers, working with Sri Lanka Army Engineers and the Road Development Authority, in Kilinochchi have begun removing a damaged bridge on the Paranthan–Karachchi–Mullaitivu (A35) road, a key route disrupted by the cyclone.
"This joint effort marks another step toward restoring vital connectivity for affected communities," it said.
India has additionally sent nearly 1,000 tonnes of food items and clothing contributed by the people of Tamil Nadu. Of these, about 300 tonnes reached Colombo on Sunday morning aboard three Indian Naval ships.
High Commissioner Santosh Jha handed over the supplies to Sri Lankan Minister for Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe.
India, on November 28, launched 'Operation Sagar Bandhu', a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) initiative, to aid Sri Lanka in its recovery from the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah.
Since the launch of the operation, India has provided about 58 tonnes of relief material, including dry rations, tents, tarpaulins, hygiene kits, essential cloths, water purification kits and about 4.5 tonnes of medicines and surgical equipment, the Indian mission said in a press release on Sunday.
Another 60 tonnes of equipment, including generators, inflatable rescue boats, Outboard Motors, and excavators, have also been brought to Sri Lanka, it said, adding that 185 tonnes of Bailey Bridge units were airlifted to restore critical connectivity along with 44 engineers.
Two columns of the National Disaster Response Force, comprising 80 experts and K9 units with specially trained dogs, assisted with immediate rescue and relief efforts in Sri Lanka.
Besides the field hospital in Mahiyanganaya, medical centres have also been set up in the badly hit Ja-Ela region and in Negombo. INS Vikrant, INS Udaygiri, and INS Sukanya provided immediate rescue and relief assistance to Sri Lanka.
Apart from the two Chetak helicopters deployed from INS Vikrant, two heavy-lift, MI-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force are actively involved in evacuations and airlifting relief material, the release said.
At the request of the Sri Lankan Disaster Management Centre, a virtual meeting was organised between DMC and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s National Remote Sensing Centre on Saturday.
Since the onset of the disaster, ISRO has been providing maps to assist DMC in its rescue efforts, the release said.
