The US-led coalition forces in Syria have announced their intention to create a new 30,000 man border force in northern Syria, along the border between Syria and Turkey. The force is expected to predominantly be Kurdish, but also include some Arab fighters.
Spokesman Col. Ryan Dillon confirmed that the inaugural class of border fighters were already trained, some 230 members. There is no timeline on getting to 30,000, though in the past the US has struggled mightily to achieve large numbers in such training efforts.
Unsurprisingly, since this whole scheme boils down to training an arming a heavily Kurdish force, guarding what is ultimately Kurdish YPG territory, Turkey is furious, saying the entire enterprise is unacceptable.
Turkish officials say they’ve already summoned a US charge d’affaires in Ankara last week to protest the effort, and are being increasingly public about their opposition to the idea. Recent history suggests Turkey’s opposition to US actions in Syria will have no impact on them, however.
US can train whatever they want, the facts still remain the same; US and their Turd cutthroats are trapped , landlocked and cornered, unless they manage to clear a passage to the Mediterranean.
That way is blocked and will remain so. Turkey wont open their borders for stolen Syrian assets (oil mainly) not this time and Iraq’s borders are closed too. There is absolutely no viable way for this stillborn Bstard US state of “Turdistan” to exist, no second “israel” no nada.
Let them train cuttroats and rally around their cauldron as much as they like. The high tech drone attack on the Russian base shows how desperate Pentagram is but they can’t do sh*t.
The majority of people within the US occupied Syria are Arabs, not Turds and they hate the Americans and (now) the Turds even more so. What are the Yankfags planning to do when they start the uprising? Kill them?
They have more to worry about, what about General Soleimani’s militias, Hezbollah thousands of battle hardened Syrian militias all under his command, what will the yankfags do when he makes good on his promise to take the US sitting ducks out?
Hey Keith I responded to your comment and I didn’t call anyone fags but, I did use the word P-ONS trying to figure out what got my response deleted when you’re post was way more colorful. I guess my perspective didn’t fit the criteria for this site.
Recent history suggests Turkey’s opposition to US actions in Syria will have no impact on them, however.
US may be going a border too far this time.
Maybe we should address our own border issues first.
All I can say is WTF???
This may not be the most stupid decision lately but it is somewhere near the top of the list-this has israel written all over it-us/israel just will not give it up. More money wasted, more casualties, civilian and military, but hey, the us has five bases in Syria, a soverign country, with no permission.
the us has five bases in Syria
Each one a potential Dien Bien Phu.. Do we really need FIVE sacrificial lambs?
What could go wrong? I wonder how Syria and Russia feel about this.
Where did my comment go in response to Keith???
Underneath Keith’s, presumably.
Why don’t you join the military? They could use a few good men just like you. You know, brave and all.
kill our attack one of our brave personnel under this president will be the ultimate mistake
Spoke like a true neocon.. Don’t worry little cowpoke, I’m sure the Israelis have already arranged it.
It’s time to isolate the US and it’s agents like Israel & India. Stop supporting terrorists for your interests. From Syria to Afghanistan you are supporting terrorists
This should outrage everyone! Nation
building, AGAIN! Costs! No problem, we have money to waste on generating new conflicts, making sure conficts never die!
This is as ridiculous as it gets. Syria never mistreated Kurds, never any complaints before. Why creating a state that would be run by YPG, an extremist faction that is a branch of PKK — and this is a fact, not just an assertion by Turkey.
Nobody was blind to US partiality to PKK, as this branch within Iraq was being armed and allowed to “defeat” ISIS, leaving them in the possesion of area far outside Kurdish regions, while withdrawing support from Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga. This is why was US so exercised when Peshmerga went for referendum — the wrong Kurds. But Peshmerga outsmarted US supported PKK, and basically allowed Iraqi Army to reposses all the lands gifted to PKK by US — namely Kirkuk and Sinjar. Poor Yazidi were finally allowed to go back home. Having failed in Iraq, neocon obsession with controlling Kurdish areas is now focusing on Syria. This would mean ratcheting up the Intensity of armaments to PKK, both in Turkey and Iraq. Up until now, it was not easy for US to undermine Peshmerga in Iraq — as PKK in Iraq tried to hide behind the popularity of Peshmerga. All that ended when US announced going back into Iraq to liberate Sinjar from ISIS and return Yazidi home.
But what happened in reality was something very strange. US liberated Sinjar with Kurds — but then told Peshmerga to stay out of the city, and allowed ONLY PKK. to enter. Peshmerga chief, Barzani then issued the statement accusing US of supporting PKK, and trying to elevate it into leading position over Iraqi Kurds. It was a shrewd move. The main reason for US trying to dislodge Barzani was simple. He was not willing to sever ties with Baghdad, and was on good terms with Erdogan.
But if US builds up bases in Syria on the birders with Iraq and Turkey, it can supply with arms PKK in Turkey and Iraq, and eventually Iran. Even though PKK is on the list of terrorist organizations, it bothers no one that YPG has all the emblems of PKK, and PKK leader’s picture is in all their offices. Now that Turkey participates in the peace process in Syria with Russia and Iran, I would expect the tension with PKK will increase inside Turkey.
But this is a dicey strategy. For one, propping the most extreme faction among Kurds will bring problems. The memories of Kurds being elevated to high positions during colonial rule of England and France — are back. This may be on purpose, to deflect attention of Turkey and Arabs from Palestinian issue. And as Iran suggested, to create another Israel. Such tactics can go both ways.
But blowback may be a serious one — PKK Kurds, under whatever name, like YPG in Syria, are not supported by all Kurdish population. YPG is responsible for political purges of the leaders of opposition. Second, for Turkey, it cannot allow PKK to become internationalized. Internationalized issues with complicit Western media scribes, predictably will create a neocon romantic story about Kurds being oppressed everywhere — Turkey included. We have already been treated to too much romanticism on the issue.
And not enough media space was ever dedicated to efforts that have been undertaken to solve the real issues of Kurdish regions. There were MANY such attempts, but militants always nipped them in the bud. Incuding Erdogan’s amnesty program that was to be the first step in political talks. Thousands Kurds came back home from the mountains. But then a massive attack on Turkish military base ended the process — and almost ended Erdogan’s career.
But YPG is also split. One branch has offices in Moscow. Position of Damascus, as protector of Kurds, is now in jeopardy. It clashes repeatedly with Turkey over Kurds. As Syrian government itself has an influential Kurd presence — it may be difficult to shift its position. It will probably just continue letting Turkey and Iraq deal with the de-facto Kurdish enclave on their borders, protected by US.
As other NATO powers like Germany and UK have for years supported PKK, Turkey may end up exiting NATO, or we will have an intra-NATO conflict. Something will have to give.
But mist importantly, is there any political air left in the anti nation building sentiment. Or are both left and right coopted, leaving only small and marginalized movements on both ends. That do not speak to each other.
Hmmm, when did the U.S. get any international permission to do this and/or domestic permission from Assad? This is why our military no longer serves the U.S. in defending us; they serve a corrupt elite in Washington DC (including Trump) and their interests. Could you imagine a foreign power working with you name the ethnic group in the U.S. in carving out a piece of territory and then setting up border guards? Total violation of sovereignty and an act of war.
Sheer arrogance always ends badly. Just look at Hitler.
Well, let’s see if I can unravel this.
Turkey supported the Saudi/Israeli/CIA regime-change proxy war in Syria, serving as the transit point for Saudi and Qatari-supported Wahhabi fighters, and tons of weapons shipped in to support the effort. And also because Turkey wanted a chunk of Northern Syria in the vicinity of Idlib. When the Russians stepped in and decisively put a stop to that, Erdogan changed sides and began working with Russia instead.
Qatar also saw the writing on the wall and pulled back their support from the failed regime change effort.
The Kurds in Iraq had long been getting chummy with Israel and had notions of pulling away from the Baghdad government. Then Isis came into being, and all kinds of changes took place. The Kurds were under assault in Syria and Iraq, so they found it convenient, once the Russians blew the whistle on US support for Isis, to team up with the US as their Ground Forces to fight the caliphate in Iraq and Syria. Emboldened, they overstepped in Iraq, and declared independence. The Iraqi government would have none of it, and once the caliphate had been dealt with, and Mosul recaptured, they push the Kurds out of Kirkuk, and shut down their independence movement.
Of course the US, ever the reliable allies, sided with Baghdad, and did nothing to support the Kurds. (There’s a lesson there that the Kurds probably took note of.) The Syrian Kurds on the other hand, have not yet learned that lesson. They are still teamed up with the faithless United States. But when Russia and Assad have retaken Idlib, the Kurds will learn just how quickly the United States will bail on them, when push comes to shove. The US will continue to be delighted to destabilize Syria as long as someone else pays the price. I suspect that the Syrians and Russians will eventually come to an accommodation with the Kurds, which will involve the Kurds gaining a degree of autonomy, playing nice with Assad, and sealing the Syrian-Turkish border on behalf of the Syrian state. The Syrian Kurds are, in the final analysis, still Syrians.
But it will all take a while, and the US/Israel will drag it out as long as possible.
The one wild card is Israel, with its arrogance and tendency to overreach. I can’t help but wonder how long Russia will put up with Israeli airstrikes on their Syrian ally. Not to mention strikes against Russian forces themselves. Putin is careful, but Israel is playing a dangerous game.
Doing what with whom….????? Why not the Marines…. Instead of Arabs & Turdks… 30,000 ….???? Didn’t the 0bama spend 500 million to get 12 of these types on the battlefield.. ??? And they will be stuck between two enemy forces.. Whoz idea was this, Bomkerz Bolton…??