President-elect Donald Trump is right about not allowing the overthrow of the Syrian government to become the fight of the United States, but at the same time, "We need to make sure we are part of the solution," former Rep. Jack Kingston told Newsmax on Sunday.
"It probably will take a multinational solution," the Georgia Republican said on Newsmax's "Wake Up America Weekend," pointing out that it is important that the fight doesn't overspill Syria's borders into Turkey and other nations.
"We have to recognize that the refugee problem is going to be huge," said Kingston. "The refugees are already swamping Lebanon with its weak economy and its own problems. And then, they will be going to Iran or Israel or Turkey or wherever they go until things settle down."
The United States, he added, has a role to ensure that its interests are protected, including Israel.
"If refugees start coming over there or it starts spilling into Israel or to Turkey, then we are going to have some concerns," said Kingston. "I think what [Trump's] saying is we're not going to jump in there. But at the same time, I think we have to have some boundaries to make sure that our interests are not in jeopardy in the Middle East and part of our interest, of course, would be winding up the war in Ukraine and again, making sure this doesn't spill over to a large international conflict.
Further, the United States must be sure that the Syrian government "doesn't fall in the hands of the bad guys," said Kingston.
"Sometimes we assume that [when] you knock out a bad guy, he's going to be replaced by a Sunday school teacher and a Boy Scout," he added. "That's not the case. Sometimes you just swap out bad people, and they're more aligned in Russia or more aligned with Iran than we want them to be."
Meanwhile, the situation is a "jigsaw puzzle" because alliances are always shifting in the Middle East, said Kingston.
"There's always a subgroup that breaks off from a group and they're more extreme than the other," he said. "We have been on the side with the Kurds against Iran, and we turned our back on them after Desert Storm… they're going to be in this crossfire. And we have to expect that there's going to be collateral damage with other countries."
Kingston added that as the U.S. has troops in the region, they will likely be doing some protective services and training, but he does not think Congress has "the appetite" to jump into another war, considering the money already spent in Ukraine.
It's also important for the outgoing Biden administration and the incoming Trump team to work together on the Syrian situation.
"I hope that they're not just communicating on social media. They really need to be side by side in a war room together," said Kingston.
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