New power game brewing in post-Daesh Syria: Turkey

Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalın on Saturday questioned if the U.S. administration would stop its support for the PKK/PYD terror group in Syria since Daesh has been defeated there.

“Now that Daesh has been defeated in Syria, will the U.S. government stop its support for the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its armed People's Protection Units (YPG), the PKK's affiliates in the country?,” Kalin wrote in an article for Daily Sabah.

“This question was discussed during a recent phone call between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump on Nov. 24. Trump's response was affirmative, adding that the huge military support the U.S. is providing to the YPG should have ended before. His statement was contradicted only a few days later by the Pentagon,” he wrote.

He called on the U.S. administration to end support for the PKK/PYD.

“Ankara expected Washington to stop its military, financial and political support of the PKK's Syrian branches after Daesh was defeated in Raqqa and the rest of Syria. After all, U.S. officials told Turkish authorities repeatedly that their relationship with the PYD and YPG was ‘transactional and temporary’ and that the weapons given to them will be taken back.”

The Turkish presidential spokesman also highlighted that images of women were used to romanticize PKK terrorism.

“[It is] a useful instrument to sell propaganda to Western audiences, but an affront to the female body and personality. Among the many ironies of this policy, this one is stunning: America's best ally in Syria is a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organization that fights against Turkey, a key U.S. ally, and seeks autonomy and eventual independence in Syria.”

Kalin also said that the policy of the U.S. is a serious issue for both Syria's territorial integrity and Turkey's national security.

“As for Turkey's objection to this policy, it is absolutely justified because any support given to the PYD and YPG is indirect and, in some cases direct, support to the PKK, and thus a threat to Turkey's national security. Every weapon and bullet sent to the YPG is a move to prolong the PKK's life.”

Sharing his article on Twitter, Kalin said: “In post-Daesh Syria, a new power game is brewing. Russia Iran want to ensure their influence in Syria by keeping [Bashar al-] Assad while the U.S. prepares to stay east of the Euphrates. But this will only lead to new conflicts and instability in Syria and beyond.”

“The scramble for Syria is likely to trigger further ethnic and sectarian tensions, break up Syria and lay the groundwork for the next wave of potential security threats,” he wrote.