Turkey could retreat on two fronts
Amidst a diplomatic rapprochement with Syria, Turkish President Erdogan makes two military announcements. Since he considers the fights against Kurdish militias in Iraq and northern Syria to be successful, he announces an end to the long-standing military interventions. Ankara is shortly before reaching the goals of the operations, Erdogan told graduates of a Military Academy in Istanbul. Both in Iraq and in Syria, the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party PKK is completely encircled. Regarding the Turkish border with Syria, Erdogan spoke of "remaining points" in a security belt he calls it, which still need to be closed.
Turkey has been conducting military interventions in northern Syria since 2016 to drive out Kurdish militias from its border and controls parts of the country in the region. The operation in northern Iraq has been running since April 2022 with the goal of repelling PKK attacks from there.
The PKK has been fighting against the Turkish state since the 80s and carries out regular attacks. Both Europe and the USA classify them as a terrorist organization.
For a long time, a rapprochement between Turkey and Syria has been noticeable. Erdogan had broken off diplomatic relations with Damascus during the civil war. President Bashar al-Assad had previously rejected a rapprochement as long as Turkish troops occupied the northern part of Syria.
- Despite the ongoing diplomatic relationship improvement with Syria, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan continues to express concerns about remaining "points" in a security belt along the Turkish-Syrian border, which are primarily associated with the presence of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK).
- In light of Turkey's successful military operations against Kurdish militias in both Iraq and Syria, including the complete encirclement of the PKK, President Erdogan recently announced an end to the country's long-standing military interventions in these regions during a speech at a Military Academy graduation ceremony in Istanbul.
- While Turkey and Iraq have been in conflict due to PKK activities from northern Iraq, and Syria and Turkey have had a strained relationship ever since Ankara entered the Syrian civil war, recent political developments and diplomatic relations between Turkey and Syria have seen an improvement, as emphasized by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
