The Karlov Assassination: Questions and Answers
The US compartmentalizing the Syria crisis by focusing solely on fighting DAESH and leaving that up to the PYD-YPG might mean that it will be left out of the aforementioned solution process.
Europe Plays the Wrong Movie
In the midst of intensified PKK violence, the HDP co-chair Figen Yüksekdağ said their party “leans on the PYD”, the Syrian branch of the PKK.
The Vicious Cycle of Increasing PKK Terror and Hardening Security Policies in Turkey
Especially after Western reactions to the coup attempt on 15 July, 2016 and the American military support for the PKK’s partner organization PYD in Syria, on top of the never-ending accession process with the EU, both the EU and the United States lost their leverage on Turkey.
As Washington looks to divide the Middle East, Turkey pins Hopes on Democracy
In return, Turkey had expected the US firstly to accept Ankara’s offer of creating a safe zone in the northern part of Syria, and secondly that it would stop its given and continuing support to the PYD, an offshoot of the PKK in Syria.
No More Ghost Generations: Syrian Children’s Education in Turkey
Also, the inconsistent policies of allied countries for the refugees during the refugee crisis, along with the existence of ethnic and religious terrorist groups such as the PYD/YPG and DAESH, constitute the external factors that encourage Turkey to be more determined to implement effective education policies.
Turkey’s Double-Edged Strategy to Bring Regional Stability
Euphrates Shield is a dual-edged strategy; first, the intention is to fight against Daesh, to ensure it is unable to penetrate Turkish borders again to carry out further terror attacks against citizens; second, the operation aims to prevent the expansion of PYD control (the Syrian affiliates of the PKK terror organization) along the Turkish borders.
The Geopolitical Crisis in the Caucasus, Ukraine, and the Middle East
So, if Russia has insisted on supporting the PYD-PKK, Russia’s relations with Turkey would have worsened.
Strategic Goal and Operational Context of the Euphrates Shield
The Euphrates Shield is intended to create a terror-free zone cleared of Daesh and PYD/PKK terrorists by the setting of a security zone between Jarabulus and Azaz within 40 kilometers of northern Syria.
Security Vulnerability and the Reorganization Dilemma: What’s Next after the Failed Coup Attempt?
Even if this policy conflicts with the interests of the USA, methodologically, the armed elements in Syria could be treated in the same way that the United States treats the PYD/PKK elements.
The Impact of the Syrian Civil War on Identity Groups in Turkey
This was partly related to the developments taking place in northern Syria, namely, the increasing power and international legitimacy of the PYD, the PKK’s Syria branch.
The Rise of Secular Radicalization and the PKK
The political rivalry in Turkey has been joined by the regional conflict between DAESH and the PKK, including its splinters such as PYD and YPG, taking it to a military dimension that has facilitated the PKK to carry armed ethnic extremism into Turkey.
Is Normalization Possible in Turkish-Egyptian Relations?
And Turkey’s criticism of US support to the PYD, the Syrian branch of the PKK terrorist organization, created tension between the two countries.
PKK’s Syria Branch PYD: A Violent Non-State Actor and its Controversial Legitimacy
ounded by the PKK terrorist organization in 2003, PYD developed into a critical actor in Syria after 2011.
Increasing Cooperation Between Ankara and Washington on the Syrian Issue: How About Revisiting the Safe Zone Idea?
Furthermore, Washington’s current preferred alliance with the Democratic Union Party (PYD), which is closely cooperating with the PKK in Syria in the fight against DAESH remains another serious point of friction between the two sides where Ankara rightfully rejects all kinds of terrorism and naturally expects its NATO ally to show respect and understanding in this regard.
The Geneva Talks and Syria in its Aftermath
As the Syrian branch of PKK, PYD is openly conducting an armed struggle against Turkey and uses every means to create a civil war in the country.
Turkey’s Settlement Process: Back to the Original Positions?
PKK leadership has two new block-partners in this new war: on the one hand, the Russians, the Iranians and the Assad regime through the PKK’s Syrian branch, the PYD, and, on the other, the military support of the US who saw the PYD as a substitute power for its own soldiers in the field war against IS.
