The Syrian Defense Ministry said Tuesday that the issue of withdrawing Turkish troops from northern Syria was discussed during talks in Moscow between the defense ministers and intelligence chiefs of Syria, Turkey, Russia, and Iran.
The talks are part of a Russian effort to broker a normalization deal between Syria and Turkey, which started in December when the Syrian and Turkish defense ministers met for the first time since 2011. No breakthroughs were made on Tuesday, but the talks were described as “constructive.”
Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad reaffirmed earlier in the day that any normalization deal with Ankara hinges on a Turkish withdrawal. “It is impossible to talk about normalizing relations with Turkey amid its occupation of Syria’s northern areas,” he said.
Another topic of discussion was the issue of Syrian refugees returning to their country. The Russian Defense Ministry said the four nations “reaffirmed their adherence to the preservation of Syria’s territorial integrity and the need to step up efforts to allow a speedy return of Syrian refugees.”
A normalization deal between Syria and Turkey would be a significant development as Ankara has been a major supporter of militant groups that took up arms against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Turkey’s recent military action in Syria has been focused on the Kurdish-led SDF, which is backed by the US.
Syria is also close to reaching a normalization deal with Saudi Arabia and returning to the Arab League. The US is strongly against such efforts as it prefers to keep the country isolated under crippling sanctions and wants to continue occupying eastern Syria.
What the US wants and what the US gets seems to be moving down the list, given the progress that Russia is making…
U.S. Foreign adventurism will be taking a backseat this summer. Just hang tight.
Russia is becoming the peacemaker in the Middle East, something Amerikkka has NEVER been capable of accomplishing.
It’s a funny old world , ain’t it Donna? 🙂
The camps in Turkey of Syrian refugees have been the breeding ground and sanctuary for jihadi attacks into Syria.
Ending that would mean either much more effective policiing of the camps in defiance of US/CIA/Israeli organization of them as jihadi sanctuaries, or just closing them down. Clearly, closing them is more practical for Turkey, and more likely to be trusted by everybody else.
But that brings the problem of what to do with the jihadis and their infrastructure which now inhabit the camps. They are inextricable from the camps, so how to extract them from returning refugees — and what to do with them then?
That is the real problem, holding things up. At bottom, it is US troublemaking. because Israel and the Saudis could not operate among them on their own, the Israelis because they could no longer pretend to be Americans, and the Saudis because they are incompetent from their own nepotism and fear of any of their own who look effective enough to endanger the regime.
I hate to think all this talk about a troop withdrawal (and a reliance on just their drones to hit the Kurds) is more of election politics by someone who is trying to retain office, but Erdogan and Kilicdaroglu are tied at 45% according to Al Monitor’s recent poll. https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2023/04/al-monitorpremise-poll-turkeys-election-dead-heat-erdogan-and-kilicdaroglu-tied but it sure looks like it may be.
Of course it’s the usual for politicians nowadays; economy, corruption and refugees so why not promise the voters that their boys are coming home if you get re-elected?
Until someone figures out what to do with the Kurds (especially the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) ) that doesn’t upset someone (yea right) Sryia will be a mess especially with them making Syria’s neighbors like Türkiye mad.