DAMASCUS (Realist English). The United States and Russia have urged Turkey to avoid escalating violence in northern Syria, Bloomberg reports.
The threat of the leader of the Turkish regime, Recep Erdoğan, to commit a new attack may help him strengthen support from the nationalists ahead of the elections in 2023, but if he fulfills it, it will lead to even greater disagreements with Washington, which supports the Kurds in their fight against ISIS*, according to a Bloomberg report.
“We call for de—escalation in Syria to protect civilian lives and to support the common goal of defeating ISIS* (an organization whose activities are banned in the Russian Federation),” State Department spokesman Ned Price said on November 21.
In turn, Russia hopes that Türkiye will show “restraint” and refrain from “any excessive use of force” in Syria, where Ankara has launched air strikes and threatens to launch a ground offensive against the Kurdish militia.
“We hope to convince our Turkish colleagues to refrain from excessive use of force on Syrian territory” in order to “prevent an escalation of tension,” said Alexander Lavrentiev, Special Representative of the Russian President for Syria.
According to Erdoğan, Türkiye will launch a ground anti-terrorist operation at the most right time for the country.
“We have the right to solve ourselves our own problems in northern Syria. …We have never been so serious about securing our borders. We will proceed with the operation at the most appropriate time for us. The administrations in Syria and Iraq should not feel the danger,” he said during a speech in parliament.
Erdoğan claims that Türkiye has the right to “take care of itself.” The gangs of the Turkish regime intend to “clear the Syrian regions of Tel Rifat, Manbij and Ain al-Arab from Kurdish militants”.
