At almost the exact same time that President Donald Trump said at the White House Tuesday that the U.S. will soon be departing Syria, his top commander for forces there said the U.S. is in for the long haul.

In a speech before the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington the commander of U.S. Central Command, Gen. Joseph Votel, said that the next steps in Syria require “stabilizing these areas, consolidating gains, getting people back into homes, [and] addressing long term issues of reconstruction.”