Russia is “stuck” in Syria and looking for others to fund its post-war reconstruction, US National Security Adviser John Bolton said, describing this as an opportunity for Washington to press for Iranian forces to quit Syria.

In an interview with Reuters, Bolton, however, sidestepped a question on whether the US plans to withdraw its troops from Syria, and which President Donald Trump was speaking about.

“Our interests in Syria are to finish the destruction of the ISIS territorial caliphate, and deal with the continuing threat of ISIS terrorism, and to worry about the presence of Iranian militias and regular forces,” Bolton said. “And those are the issues that keep us there.”

Also, the US national security adviser said that Russian President Vladimir Putin, who met Trump in Helsinki on July 16, had told the US that Moscow could not compel the Iranians to leave Syria.

“But he also told us that his interest and Iran’s were not exactly the same,” added John Bolton. “So we’re obviously going to talk to him about what role they can play.”