Turkey Mulls Talks to Avoid War As Russia and U.S. Allies Chant 'One Syria'

Turkey has raised the possibility of opening a new dialogue with Syria, as its supporters threatened to join Kurds in resisting a Turkish invasion in the northwestern district of Afrin.

Ankara initially denied Tuesday that a massive convoy of fighters supportive of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad— an ally of both Russia and Iran—entered the Kurd-held enclave and later claimed that Turkish airstrikes turned the incoming forces back. Videos surfaced of pro-Syrian government and Kurdish fighters chanting "one Syria," in celebration of an alliance that Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said Wednesday would have "serious consequences" for Assad partisans.

Related: U.S. and Russia Allies Join Forces in Syria, But This Causes New Problems for Leading World Powers

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Kalin also said in a televised address, however, that Turkish intelligence officials "may establish direct or indirect contact when it is required to solve certain problems under extraordinary conditions," Bloomberg News reported. His remarks hinted at the potential for renewed contact between the neighbors, who have been on poor terms since Turkey helped sponsor a 2011 uprising against Assad.

Assad has called Turkey and the U.S. "invaders" because their military presence backed non-state actors in Syria. Turkey, the U.S. and Gulf Arab states backed various insurgent groups opposed to Assad's rule, but this opposition has become severely splintered by ideological infighting and competition with jihadi groups such as the Islamic State militant group and others affiliated with Al-Qaeda.

Turkey remained a supporter of the rebel Free Syrian Army, but the U.S. switched its focus to Kurdish militias that later formed most of the Syrian Democratic Forces. Turkey has criticized the U.S. over its backing of Kurdish groups such as the People's Protection Units (YPG) because Ankara alleged they were linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, a militant group responsible for decades of violence across Turkey.

While the U.S. remained a staunch opponent of Assad's leadership in Syria, Pentagon-backed Kurds have been more concerned with greater autonomy in northern Syria than total regime change. Syrian Kurds have long protested Assad's policies seen as suppressing their cultural identity, but Turkish backing for the Syrian opposition has more seriously alienated them, resulting in frequent clashes between formerly CIA-backed Syrian rebel groups and the Pentagon-backed Kurdish force.


source: newsweek