President of the United States Donald Trump rejected fears that the withdrawal of the U.S. troops from Syria left American-allied Kurds abandoned, Bloomberg reported.

“Syria may have some help with Russia and that’s fine,” Trump said. “It’s a lot of sand.”

He added that the Kurds who were fighting against the Islamic State together with the American troops are “no angels”.

Trump called the situation on the Turkish border with Syria “strategically brilliant” for the United States and reiterated his position the Americans can fight their own battles on their territories.

Turkey started offensive in Syria’s north last week after Trump announced the withdrawal of the U.S. troops. The United States introduced sanctions against Turkey and called for ceasefire.

Earlier Trump said the sanctions are more efficient in terms of maintaining stability than the troops are.