Wall Street Journal reported that Washington was considering replacing U.S. troops in Syria with the forces of the Arab countries to "stabilize the situation in Syria’s northeast".
Officials cited by the Journal say, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates have also been asked to send troops, in addition to billions of dollars for "restoration efforts" in Syria.
The force would be tasked with securing the large stretch of Syria east of the Euphrates River currently controlled by U.S.-backed Arab and Kurd troops, to prevent the territory "falling into the hands of a resurgent Islamic State or Iranian-backed forces once American troops depart," the report said.
However, the Gulf states had all provided support for Sunni extremist groups.
Charles Lister, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, told the Journal that Saudi Arabia and the UAE are already heavily involved in the war in Yemen, while Egypt could be reluctant to patrol territory, not under the control of the Syrian government.
The news comes as Trump seeks to pull U.S. troops out of the country, a move some say has been jeopardized by recent U.S. airstrikes. In announcing the attack late Friday, Trump said U.S. partners in the region would be asked to take "greater responsibility," including by "contributing larger amounts of money."
Trump wants to bring U.S. troops home from Syria but has not set a timeline, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said on Monday, two days after the United States, the United Kingdom and France bombed Syria.
One U.S. official told Reuters news agency Washington is looking at what forces might be able to follow on in areas of Syria formerly under Islamic State control, should the U.S. leave or reduce its force dramatically. But no decisions have been made to do this.
RIYAD OPEN TO SENDING TROOPS
Saudi Arabia would be prepared to send troops into Syria as part of the U.S.-led coalition if a decision was taken to widen it, Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Tuesday.
"We are in discussion with the U.S. and have been since the beginning of the Syrian crisis about sending forces into Syria," Jubeir told a news conference in Riyadh with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. "There are discussions regarding ... what kind of force needs to remain in eastern Syria and where that force would come from, and those discussions are ongoing," Jubeir said.
US National Security Adviser John Bolton reportedly contacted Egypt’s intelligence chief Abbas Kamel to discuss the matter.
However, Yahya Kadwani, deputy chairman of Egypt's parliamentary committee has told Sputnik Cairo would deploy its troops to Syria only after UN Security Council approval, but the matter has not been discussed by lawmakers.
