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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani on December 3 that Turkey’s priority was keeping calm borders and that Syria’s government needs to engage in a real political process to de-escalate events in its north.
“Erdogan stated that Turkey, in accordance with its national security and interests, is taking steps to prevent the PKK terrorist organization and its extensions from taking advantage of the developments and would take [further] steps,” Turkey’s presidency said in a readout of a phone call.
Erdogan also told al-Sudani during the call that Turkey valued Syria’s territorial integrity, unity and stability, adding that Ankara wanted to avoid civilian deaths.
The Turkish President’s remarks came nearly a week after al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham and its allies, including armed factions backed by Ankara, launched a large-scale offensive in northwestern Syria.
The militants captured some 800 square kilometers from government forces within a few days, including the key city of Aleppo.
The offensive was launched on November 27 from HTS-held pocked in Idlib, which was under a ceasefire deal brokered by Russia and Turkey more than four years ago. Ankara maintains a large force and it clearly had advanced knowledge of the offensive. Yet, it did nothing to stop it.
Erdogan is now attempting to capitalize on the success of the offensive by setting demands for the Syrian government, most notable to share power with the militants.
Turkey has for over a decade sought to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and while there were reports of a rapprochement over the last two years, the HTS-led offensive shows that Ankara never really changed its plans when it comes to Syria.
Turkish foreign minister, Hakan Fidan, said after meeting his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, for emergency talks in Ankara on December 2 that the crisis in Syria was the result of Assad’s refusal to engage in political dialogue with the opposition.
Fidan said at the joint press conference: “It would be wrong to explain recent developments in Syria with foreign intervention. The latest developments show the need for Damascus to reconcile with its people and the legitimate opposition.”
Calling on the Syria government to come to the negotiating table, he added: “We don’t want to see cities falling into ruin; we don’t want to see people displaced. Stopping refugee flow and having people returning to their homes is essential.” But he also warned against excessive external interventions, and said Turkey could act as a mediator between Assad and the militants.
Turkey received vast support from international and regional powers when it first moved to support the Syrian opposition after the outbreak of the war in 2011. However, the situation is very different now with the country receiving solid support from its key allies, Russia and Iran.
In addition, many other regional powers, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, do not want Syria to fall into the hands of Turkey-backed militants.
Still, Erdogan could rely on support from both the United States and Israel if he decides to continue to escalate against the Syrian government. These three countries remain the biggest beneficiaries of the HTS-led offensive in northwestern Syria.
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