Ankara will continue the armed struggle against the Kurdish formations, despite the threats of the American leader Donald Trump. This was stated by the official representative of the President of Turkey Ibrahim Kalyn.
“Turkey expects the US to respect our strategic partnership, and does not want it to be overshadowed by terrorist propaganda.” There is no difference between the “Islamic State” *, the Kurdistan Workers' Party, the “People’s Self-Defense Forces” and the “Democratic Union” Party. We will continue to fight against them, ”Kalyn wrote on his Twitter page.
At the same time, the representative of the Turkish President stressed that Ankara does not intend to fight the Kurdish population and the Syrian citizens. The policy of Turkey, according to Kalyn, will be aimed at eradicating the terrorist threat. In this regard, he called on Donald Trump to abandon the support of the Kurdish forces.
Ankara believes that the Kurdish allies of the United States are associated with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which is banned in Turkey. We are talking about the Kurdish people's self-defense detachments (Yekîneyên Parastina Gel, YPG), which were included in the organization Syrian Democratic Forces (SDS, Democratic Union).
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly spoken about the danger of the transfer of weapons to the PKK, which the United States supplied the YPG. According to him, the transfer of American weapons across the Syrian-Turkish border will undermine the security of south-west Turkey, where Turkish security officials clash with Kurdish formations. Washington assures Ankara that such a scenario is impossible and requires security guarantees for the VTS.
"Threats will not lead to anything"
On January 14, Donald Trump posted a message on Twitter in which he promised to arrange for Turkey “economic devastation” if it starts a military operation against Syrian Kurds.
“We are starting a long-awaited withdrawal of troops from Syria, simultaneously striking a blow at the small remaining territorial caliphate of the Islamic State, and from many sides. We attack again from the existing nearby bases, if it is converted. We will exhaust Turkey economically if they hit the Kurds, ”wrote Trump.
The US president called for a 20-mile (32-kilometer) security zone on the Syrian-Turkish border and warned the Kurds against provocations against Turkey.
Commenting on Trump’s statements, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt авavuşoлуlu said, “no threats will not scare Turkey, and economic threats will lead nowhere.”
In a conversation with RT, Doctor of Political Sciences, a professor at Moscow State University, Andrei Manoilo, called Trump's promise to destroy Turkey "air shaking." According to the expert, the United States does not have the appropriate levers for this.
“There is no strong economic dependence between the two countries, and if Trump imposes sanctions, they will eventually come around to a backstage to American companies.” Therefore, the head of the White House will not take any concrete measures. The situation is such that Washington will suffer more from the degradation of US-Turkish relations than Ankara, ”said Manoilo.
The expert believes that the political contradictions between Turkey and the United States may affect the military-technical cooperation between the two states. According to Manoilo, Trump’s harsh comments will lead to the fact that Washington will be forced to make concessions on arms contracts.
- US Army in Syria
- AFP
- © DELIL SOULEIMAN
“The aggressive US rhetoric only adds benefits to the Turks. Now on the agenda is a deal on the Patriot complex. It seems to me that Ankara will eventually acquire this system, but will desperately bargain for it in order to bring down the price and achieve the most favorable conditions, ”said Manoylo.
Preparing for a military operation
Another tension in the US-Turkish relations arose against the backdrop of the withdrawal of American troops from the SAR announced by Trump. In Syria, there are 2.2 thousand US soldiers. In early January 2019, the first batch of military equipment was withdrawn from the Arab Republic. The main task of the US military in the SAR is to provide weapons and training for opposition armed groups, including the VTS.
Meanwhile, Ankara does not hide the plans for a military operation against the Kurdish formations in the north of Syria. On January 11, Turkish National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar announced that army units would be deployed to Manbij and to the territory east of the Euphrates, which control the YPG. According to him, "all the necessary plans related to this issue have been developed." However, Acar did not specify the timing of the operation.
In December, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the brunt of the attack in Syria would be on the YPG in order to clean Manbij and transfer the city to the Arab population.
Earlier, Ankara launched two military campaigns in the north of Syria against Kurdish forces. From August 2016 to May 2017, the Turkish army conducted the operation “Euphrates Shield”. As a result, a “security zone” was created between the Syrian settlements of Azaz and Jarablus. In January 2018, Ankara launched Operation Olive Branch. It ended in March with the occupation of the Afrin area, which was under the control of the YPG.
On January 8, Turkish and US officials made contradictory statements about the fate of the Kurdish formations. Erdogan said that the US position on the YPG is unacceptable. At the same time, in an interview with CNBC, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the leaders of the United States and Turkey had allegedly agreed on security guarantees for the Syrian allies of the United States.
- Presidents of the USA and Turkey Donald Trump and Recep Tayyip Erdogan
- AFP
- © MURAT CETINMUHURDAR / TURKISH PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE
“Erdogan promised President Trump that after our departure, the Turks will continue the campaign against the“ Islamic State ”and that the people we fought side by side in this campaign will be protected,” said Pompeo.
On January 12, the head of the US Department of State held a telephone conversation with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. During the conversation, Pompeo stressed that Washington recognizes Ankara’s right to solve security problems at its borders. However, he once again drew attention to the fact that the United States "attaches particular importance" to the security of the forces that fought against the IS.
"A counterweight to the influence of Ankara"
Andrei Manoilo believes that in reality Washington is not worried about the fate of the Kurds. According to him, in negotiations with Ankara, the United States is ready to sacrifice security guarantees for YPG.
“I don’t think that US interests will suffer if Ankara launches a new operation against YPG. Washington will surely achieve security guarantees only for its troops. Nevertheless, the States are unlikely to give up military support for the Kurds. In the US’s understanding, the Kurds remain a counterweight to Ankara’s influence in the region, ”noted Manoylo.
In a conversation with RT, the head of the political direction of the Center for the Study of Modern Turkey, Yuri Mavashev, said that differences in American-Turkish relations, including on the “Kurdish issue”, will only intensify. As the expert predicts, Ankara and Washington will not make concessions to each other.
“Attempts by the United States to put pressure on Turkey are extremely negatively perceived by the entire Turkish elite and society. The point here, of course, is not the defense of the Kurds, but the fact that America stubbornly refuses to see a sovereign player in Turkey and take its interests into account. For this reason, Erdogan’s figure is very inconvenient from the point of view of US national interests. In my opinion, Ankara and Washington are not able to reach a compromise in the foreseeable future, ”concluded Mavashev.
* “Islamic State” (IG, ISIL) - the organization is recognized as terrorist by the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated December 29, 2014.