The ongoing Astana process, Turkey’s fight against the PKK, and the current political rift between Ankara and Washington over the issue of the PKK-YPG are forcing Ankara to take a more comprehensive strategy regarding the Syrian crisis.
” However, Trump previously promised the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan that he will immediately stop arm deliveries to the YPG in Syria, which didn’t happen.
It is important to investigate the implications of Trump’s unsettled withdrawal decision for Turkey, and evaluate this new development in relation to the Ankara-Washington disagreement over the issue of American support for the YPG.
While the three presidents unanimously agreed on terrorism being the main concern for Syria, President Erdogan stressed the need to counter the YPG/PYD threat it faces along the Syria-Turkey border.
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In recent years the YPG, the Syrian branch of the internationally recognized terror organization PKK, has increased its activity emanating from Syria since they took advantage of the Civil War and occupied the northern regions in 2012.
Ironically, the Obama administration had refused to intervene in Syria early in the conflict until the emergence of Daesh, to which it responded with a policy of supporting “local partners” such as the YPG in northern Syria.
continues to support the PKK-linked YPG in northern Syria while EU members harbor suspects connected to a coup attempt in July 2016 to forcibly oust Turkey’s democratically elected government, Turkey may align itself with Russia.
In the anti-Daesh coalition efforts, the administration allowed CENTCOM to take the lead and continued the policy of allying with “local partners” (YPG) to defeat Daesh, resulting in tensions with NATO ally Turkey.
authorities firstly helped the establishment of an operational group named Euphrates Volcano by uniting the PYD’s armed wing People’s Protection Units (YPG) with several minor armed groups.
iming to eliminate terrorist elements of PKK/YPG, The Operation Olive Branch (OOB) launched by Turkey on January 20 revealed how local, regional and international actors in the Syrian crisis are intertwined.
ome local security sources spoke to Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity that the YPG/PKK terrorists force civilians to dig two-meter deep, two-meter wide and kilometers-long ditches in order to block the entrance of Turkish military forces into Afrin.
As it was also the case with the previous operation, Brett McGurk, the most prominent US official responsible in Syria and a fervent supporter of the PKK/YPG, met with representatives from the UAE and Saudi Arabia during his visit to Abu Dhabi.