An article recently published in the Turkish state media, signalling a U-turn in Turkey’s Syrian policy, claims that a decade-long conflict between Ankara and Damascus is about to end and a joint military operation against the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) is on the agenda for negotiation.
The title of the article, which also made the headline of the daily Türkiye on Thursday, read: ‘Once again with Syria: the PKK will be eliminated, refugees will return home.’
According to the article, a series of meetings have been held by officials of the two administrations in the city of Aqaba in Jordan, with the participation of moderating countries, and the meetings are expected to continue in the new year.
The article stated that a joint military operation against the PKK, the rebuilding of Aleppo, the return of the Syrian refugees to their home country, and the re-opening of the border crossings at Qamishli in al-Hasakah governorate and Keseb in Latakia governorate are all on the agenda.
The article went on to claim that ‘the Assad administration was positive about a joint operation against the PKK on the east of the river of Euphrates, on the condition that a similar operation followed in Idlib.’
There was also a vague remark in the article about the parties being of the same opinion, that ‘the military presence of the United States in the region will be eventually brought to an end by driving the tribes in Deir ez-Zor, ar-Raqqa and al-Hasekah to rebellion.’
While the article voiced strong claims on behalf of both the Ankara and Damascus administrations, it remains unclear whether it was actually based on genuine intelligence or was merely a propaganda piece, as it was accompanied by no other similar report in any local or international news medium.
The ruling coalition of Turkish president Erdoğan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) have not yet sent any sign of a radical shift in Turkey’s Syrian policy, and until very recently there have been talks at the highest level of the administration regarding new operations aimed at occupation of Syria.
The only party that fiercely urges the Turkish administration to restore relations with the Assad administration, with the primary objective of uniting against the Kurds and the autonomous administration in Northeast Syria, is the tiny national socialist Vatan Party.
