al-qaida chief ayman al-zawahiri the coordinator 2016 part 12-23-russia-turkey-9

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Al-Qaida chief Ayman al-Zawahiri The Coordinator 2016 Part 12-23-Russia-Turkey-9

While Russia and Turkey quarrel the Islamic State has other plans. "If Daesh (ISIS) and Al-Nusra are kept outside the ceasefire, then the PYD-YPG must similarly be excluded from the ceasefire for it is a terrorist group just as they are," Erdogan

International jihad has undergone a wholesale internal revolution in recent years. The dramatic emergence of the Islamic State (IS) and its proclamation of a Caliphate means that the world no longer faces one Sunni jihadi threat, but two, as IS and al-Qaida compete on the global stage. State instability across the Muslim world must be addressed or jihadis will continue to thrive. C: remember: AQSL Strategy: Failing states. Meanwhile, al Qaeda continues to conduct local campaigns of subversion and destabilization in critical operational theaters where failed or failing states provide new opportunities for al Qaeda to extend its reach and consolidate its presence. Countries and regions such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Algeria, the Sahel, East Africa, and Somalia fall within this category. Opportunism. Al Qaeda continues to be as opportunistic as it is instrumental: seeking to identify defensive gaps that can be quickly and effectively exploited for attacks.

“Russia is not an enemy,” said Israel’s Air Defense Commander DEBKAfile February 26, 2016, 7:20 PM (IDT)Brig. Gen. Tzvika Haimovich, commander of Israel’s Air Defense Forces, told reporters Thursday that Russian aircraft had violated Israeli air space at least twice in the past half year. But, he added, “The Russians are not an enemy” and the Israeli Air Force “has no intention to create needless friction” with Russian air power plying the skies of neighboring Syria. Haimovich spoke alongside US Lt. Gen. Timothy Ray, 3rd Air Force commander and the man charged with commanding a US-Israel Joint Task Force for air and missile defense, in a press briefing on the ongoing Juniper Cobra US-Israeli missile defense drill.DEBKAfile: There were many more Russian air intrusions of Israeli skies over the Golan and the Sea of Galilee than disclosed by the Gen. Haimovich.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday Feb 24, said Syrian Kurdish militia forces must remain outside the scope of a ceasefire agreed between Syria's warring parties, just like "Islamic State" (ISIS) terrorists and the Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Nusra Front, AFP reports. "If Daesh (ISIS) and Al-Nusra are kept outside the ceasefire, then the PYD-YPG must similarly be excluded from the ceasefire for it is a terrorist group just as they are," Erdogan told local officials in Ankara, referring to the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its People's Protection Units (YPG) militia.

Feb 25, 2016 Washington's Message to Turkey: 'Don't Expect NATO to Rescue You in Syria'

TEHRAN (FNA)- The ceasefire deal worked out by Russia and the United States indicates that

“Know your enemy and know yourself and you can fight a hundred battles without disaster”― Sun Tzu, The Art of War

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Washington does not intend to help Turkey, should it decide to send ground forces to Syria and accidentally clash with Russia, former US

diplomat Jim Jatras said."Washington has made it clear to Ankara that 'you guys are on your own and if you are stupid enough to send your forces into Syria and you get hit by the Russians, don't expect NATO to come to the rescue,'" Jatras told RT.European members of the North Atlantic Alliance appear to share this sentiment. Last week, Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn told Der Spiegel that the bloc could not "allow itself to be pulled into a military escalation with Russia" resulting from recent tensions between Moscow and Ankara.An unnamed German diplomat also confirmed that NATO was not "going to pay the price for a war started by the Turks."Jatras also mentioned that Ankara and Riyadh could have inadvertently helped Russia and the United States to ink the deal on the cessation of hostilities in Syria."I think one reason this agreement came … is because the Turks and the Saudis for the last few weeks have been making a lot of noise about their willingness to intervene on the ground in Syria to save – let's face it — their terrorist assets there, but only if the Americans led the way," he noted.Both Turkey and Saudi Arabia have claimed that they are ready to take part in the US-led ground offensive to tackle Daesh, but many have questioned their true intentions. After all, Ankara and Riyadh have long supported anti-Assad radicals, who are trying to establish an Islamic caliphate in Syria.In addition, many have warned that the Syrian battlefield is already overcrowded. Additional ground forces would only escalate violence instead of helping to end it.Jatras further said that Russia's military engagement in Syria has been instrumental in offering the war-torn country hope that the five-year-long conflict could be resolved."There would not even be a chance of a viable ceasefire if it was not for the Russian air campaign in Syria and the advances made by the Syrian Army, with Russian support, which has essentially forced the various terrorist groups supported by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and – let's be honest about it – by the United States, into a very precarious position where they are essentially suing for peace," he asserted.

EU warns Russia and Turkey are headed for open warEU foreign policy chief warns a 'hot war' between Russia and Turkey may be imminent as Syrian war spins into 'something bigger.EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned on Tuesday that Russia and Turkey are headed towards a "hot war," as she voiced concerns that the growing tensions between the two on the Syrian border risk spilling over into open warfare.Speaking at a debate at the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee in Brussels, Mogherini said, "we are always referring to Syria as a proxy war among regional actors. This risks to become something bigger than this.""I'm not thinking of a cold war. No, we risk a hot war among different actors than the one we always think of. Not necessarily Russia and the United States, but Russia and Turkey, could be," she said.As Europeans, we have a clear interest in trying to contain and scale down the tensions."Mogherini's statements come in the wake of a ceasefire in Syria announced by the US and Russia which is to go into effect on Saturday. There remain huge doubts over the implementation of the deal, as it does not take into account Islamic State (ISIS) or Al Qaeda's Syrian affiliate Nusra Front, which Russia could continue striking.





Her comments also come as US Secretary of State John Kerry warned Tuesday that if Russia and the Syrian regime are not serious about a political

transition, he has a "Plan B" that likely would consist of a military escalation.Russia has been conducting airstrikes on the ISIS and Nusra Front as well as Western-backed rebel forces since last September, to prop up the regime of its ally Bashar al-Assad. Iran has likewise been militarily involved to keep Assad in power.Tensions between Russia and NATO-member Turkey have been high, ever since Turkey shot down a Russian Su-24 jet on the Syrian border on November 24, killing two Russian officers. In response, Russia issued vast sanctions on Turkey dealing serious financial damage.Russia has also been spying on Turkey from the border, and has warned that if Turkey and Saudi Arabia follow through on their statements hinting at a ground offensive in Syria, it would cause a "world war."Highlighting the growing military standoff between the two, Russia in December deployed its Mosvka missile cruiser off the coast of Syria. While the ship was said to be there to aid the airstrike campaign against Syrian rebels, its arsenal includes nuclear-capable Vulkan missiles designed to sink other warships - indicating the deployment was likely meant as a message to Turkey instead.

Feb 24, 2016 Terrorists Receive New Arms Cargos from Turkey

TEHRAN (FNA Feb 24)- The terrorists stationed in the Northern outskirts of Lattakia city have been equipped with new cargoes of weapons reportedly coming from Turkey.The new batch of arms includes BM-21 122-mm Grad multiple rocket launchers, sources said on Wednesday.Lattakia is a province bordering Turkey. The Syrian army and popular forces have recently pushed the militant groups back from more territories in the Northern part of Lattakia province and took back several villages and heights.Earlier this week, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said that more than 80 nations, particularly Turkey and Saudi Arabia, have provided financial, logistical and material assistance to terrorist groups, who are fighting in Syria.The Syrian leader described foreign sponsorship as "active" and "unlimited." Some of those countries support radicals "directly with money, with logistical support, with armaments, with recruitments," he noted in an interview with Spain's El Pais newspaper.Others help "them politically, in different international forums", he added.Assad accused Saudi Arabia of being the key financial backer of the militants, who are trying to overthrow him. He also urged the international community to prevent "other countries, specially Turkey, from sending more recruits, more terrorists, more armaments, or any kind of logistical support" to terrorists, if it wants to see an efficient ceasefire in Syria.

February 24, 2016 Special Dispatch No.6324“Know your enemy and know yourself and you can fight a hundred battles without disaster”

― Sun Tzu, The Art of WarCdW Intelligence to Rent of 9 03/05/2023



Turkey Sabotages Geneva Talks, Slams Both U.S. And Russia; Turkey's Secular Media Criticizes Erdogan

Angered by Washington and Moscow's support of the secular, moderate Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), as well as by advances by the army of the Syrian regime of President Bashar Al-Assad around Aleppo and its cutting of all the supply lines to the Islamist rebels from Turkey, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his AKP government have been making statements indicating that Turkey may make a desperate and dangerous attempt to act militarily and confront Russia in Syria – which may drag NATO into an unwanted conflict.Erdogan and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu are claiming that the PYD, along with its armed wing, the Peoples' Protection Units (YPG), is a terrorist organization affiliated with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), against which Turkey is conducting massive operations in Turkey and in northern Iraq. The AKP government equates the PYD with the Islamic State (ISIS), and considers the High Negotiation Committee (HNC), the coalition recently formed in Riyadh by Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, as the only legitimate opposition group. Under the HNC umbrella are jihadi organizations, such as Jaysh Al-Islam and Ahrar Al-Sham, which Russia considers terrorist organizations.The PYD, along with like-minded Arab fighters, formed the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), as the other opposition group. Its secular, democratic-progressive nature contrasts with the sectarian Islamist Salafi nature of the Riyadh group. SDC members are the ground forces that the U.S. supports and relies on in its fight against ISIS.On January 26, 2016, three days before the Geneva III talks were meant to begin between the Syrian government and these two main opposition groups, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Turkey would boycott the talks in Geneva if the PYD is invited to sit at the negotiation table as part of the opposition. Prime Minister Davutoglu reiterated the same threat a few hours later. The U.S. accepted this, with the aim of refraining from antagonizing Turkey, and U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner said the next morning that the PYD would not take part in the negotiations at this time. At the same time, Russia demanded that UN special envoy for the Syria crisis Staffan de Mistura not give in to Turkey's "blackmail."Following Turkey's ultimatum, de Mistura withdrew the invitation to PYD leader Saleh Muslim, who had already arrived in Geneva for the talks, but did invite Haytham Manna, Muslim's secular Arab partner in the SDC. Manna rejected the invitation, saying that he would not sit at the table unless his Kurdish co-chair, Saleh Muslim, was also invited. Members of the Islamist HNC were also unwilling to start negotiating with the Syrian government until it agreed to meet their preconditions. On the second day of the talks, the opening of which had been delayed until February 1, 2016, de Mistura declared them a failure and ended them.Following are excerpts from Turkish media critical of Turkey's contrarian actions: SDC Co-Chair Manna: Erdogan Wanted An Islamist Jihadi SyriaFollowing Turkey's blocking of the participation of the Syrian Kurds' representative, the PYD, at the Geneva peace talks, the co-chair of the U.S.-supported SDC, Haytham Manna, stated that the SDC would not participate in the talks, and that therefore the group would not abide by any decisions made during the talks. Manna told the Turkish opposition daily Cumhuriyet: "Erdogan has always been supportive of the extremists in Syria. You cannot bring in an extremist regime in Syria to replace a dictator. We need democracy. As someone who follows politics in Turkey, and as someone who maintains good relations with opposition figures, I can say that Erdogan never wanted a secular democratic Syria.





He wanted an Islamist and jihadi one. The peace process, and these talks, can go nowhere without the participation of the Kurdish leader Saleh Muslim of

the PYD. They [the international community] need us, because we control and have sovereignty over 16% of Syria."[1] Turkish Analyst: What A Shame It Is For Turkish Diplomacy, To Say 'If PYD Is At The Negotiation Table, ISIS Must Be Too'In the Turkish opposition daily Diken, Cenk Sidar wrote that the international actors' finally agreeing on a road map for trying to resolve the tragic Syrian crisis that is threatening the entire region diplomatically through negotiations was a promising development, noting, "The constructive attitudes of the U.S. and Russia, despite their differences, gave hope for a possible solution." He continued with a condemnation of his country's shameful behavior: "From the very beginning of the crisis, the AKP government, which out of political calculations cut all ties and negotiations with Assad, has taken no steps towards peace building and has aided and armed all sorts of questionable groups. It must still not understand that Turkey has ended up as the loser, both politically and materially. Now, the AKP government has said that Turkey would boycott the Geneva talks if the Kurdish PYD is invited to participate. No actor but Turkey would make such threats. This is a source of shame for Turkey."Sidar added that it is only normal that the PYD should be at the table, as it controls an important region in northern Syria and is the only political representative of Syria's Kurds. He asked: "If the PYD is a terrorist organization [as AKP government officials often claim], why has the AKP government hosted PYD leader [Saleh Muslim] multiple times in Ankara? Were they not committing the crime of aiding and abetting a terrorist organization by hosting its leader? And how can the AKP government, that sat to negotiate with PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan [in a Turkish prison] be unable to sit with the PYD in Geneva for the humanitarian ideal of building peace? What a contradiction it is [for it to] reject the PYD's inclusion in the Geneva talks! And how shameful for our traditions of diplomacy to say 'if the PYD participates, so must ISIS.'"[2] Columnist Tastekin: Turkey Is "Part Of – Or Even The Source Of – The [Syria] Crisis"In his January 27, 2016 column in the liberal opposition Turkish daily Radikal, Fehim Tastekin criticized the AKP government's Syria policy and its hostility towards the Kurds, and said that Turkey was livid because the peace initiative in Geneva was not aimed at guaranteeing that Assad would go. The Geneva process, he wrote, was a symbol of the end of Erdogan's and Davutoglu's dreams of having their Friday prayers in Damascus soon, as they had stated in 2012. Arguing that nothing that AKP government planned had worked, that the U.S. had not heeded its demands and ultimatums, and that the Kurdish PYD and YPG had become a rising force in the eyes of both the U.S. and Russia, Tastekin stated: "Turkey is using the Kurds to torpedo the peace process, sabotaging the peace table... and beating up Kurds, both inside and in Syria] to no avail... Some in Ankara [i.e. the AKP and pro-AKP media] may interpret this tactic of sabotage[ing the peace process] as a way of showing the power of the great Turkish state. But it not only diminishes Turkey as an actor in the resolution of the crisis, it makes it a part of – or even the source of – the crisis."[3] Turkish Analyst On Rise In U.S.-Turkey Tensions Over PYDProminent Turkish columnist and analyst Cengiz Candar of Radikal, wrote that around the time the Geneva talks began, in late January 2016, he had participated in two international panels in Europe on Kurdish issues. At that time, he said, he had told EU and U.S officials: "The attitude of the U.S. with regard to the developments in the Middle East reminds of Britain during World War I. They make similar promises that they cannot keep,





to powers that are in conflict with one another."[4]The previous week, Candar had written that faced with choosing between

Ankara and PYD, the U.S., gritting its teeth, had at that point chosen Ankara, sacrificing the PYD, its ally and the only force fighting against ISIS, for Turkey. He also noted that the U.S. would have to do something to balance its act, to show that it cares about the interests of the Kurds, so as not lose an important ally to Russia.[5] His advice was validated shortly thereafter, when Brett McGurk, the U.S. State Department's Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, visited the Kurdish town of Kobane on January 30-31 together with French and British representatives, and held talks for two days with the PYD, the YPG, and representatives of the Kurdish autonomous region. This visit was the first to Syria by a high-level U.S. official.Candar wrote on February 3, 2016: "Erdogan and Davutoglu shout, every day, at the top of their lungs, that 'the PYD is terrorist,' and make nonsensical claims that 'the PYD is an accomplice to the massacres by the Assad regime' – [accusations] that no one in his right mind would believe. As they continue to scream, the highest-ranking U.S. representative to Syria visits the Kurdish town of Kobane – showing that when it comes to the PYD, the U.S. does not care about what Turkey is saying. At the time of this Kobane visit, the American and Russian delegations were each holding meetings in Geneva with PYD leader Saleh Muslim, promising him that the PYD would participate in later stages of the talks and that the Kurds would play a role in shaping the future of Syria."

Noting that as the Geneva talks are the focus, the Russians are at the same time continuing to bomb rebel targets; with their help, he stated, the Syrian army had retaken the area north of Aleppo, cutting off the road to, and Turkey's strategic supply lines to, the Islamist organizations that had controlled Aleppo and the surrounding area since 2012.[6] He added: "The mentality of

Turkey's rulers can promise only blood, death, and tears."[7]

Erdogan gives "rabi'a" hand sign: "Hey America!" Haberexpress, February 10, 2016 Erdogan Lashes Out At U.S. And RussiaFor his part, President Erdogan lambasted the U.S. over McGurk's visit to Kobane. On February 5, 2016, he told reporters on his plane on his way back from his Latin America tour: "The PYD and YPG are terrorist organizations just as the PKK is. We have warned you about this all the time. Now, Obama's representative visits Kobane at the time of Geneva talks. The PYD cannot participate in Geneva, but these [people] go all the way to Kobane to meet with them! He [McGurk] is awarded a plaque by a so-called YPG general! How can we trust you [i.e. the U.S.]? You choose: Is it I who am your ally, or is it the terrorists in Kobane?"Asked about a Russian statement the previous day that the activity along the border showed that the Turkish military was getting ready to invade Syria, Erdogan lashed out at Russia too: "Why are you in Syria? You are an invader there. You are acting together with a murderer [i.e. Assad] who killed 400,000 people through state terror. You continue to kill civilians. The Turkish military never did that. Our 911-km border [with Syria] is under threat – of course we will take all measures [they deem necessary]. We must be ready at any given moment. Furthermore, our kinsmen [i.e. the Turkmens] are there [in Syria]. Hey





Russia! What's it to you? Do you have a border there? Do you have kinsmen there? What business do you have there?"[8]

In response to Erdogan's criticism, State Department official John Kirby said, on February 8, that the U.S.'s difference of opinion with Turkey on the issue of the PYD was not new, and added: "We do not recognize the PYD as a terrorist organization, unlike the PKK." This official statement escalated the tension between two countries, and U.S. Ambassador to Turkey John Bass was summoned to the Turkish Foreign Office in Ankara to be told of Turkey's displeasure.[9]At a February 10 meeting with village and neighborhood administrators, or mukhtars, a furious Erdogan slammed the U.S. again: "Some people abroad say that the PYD and the YPG are not terrorist organizations. They certainly are, just as the PKK is. It is a shame that those who make these statements are advocating for terrorists. Are you with us, or with the terrorist organizations? There is no difference between the PKK, the PYD, and the YPG. We are telling America that they are terrorists, [and] they [i.e. the U.S.] get up and say they do not consider them as such."Hey America! We have asked you many times: Are you with us or with the terrorist organizations PKK and PYD? Hey America! You cannot teach us about the PKK and the PYD. We know them very well. We know ISIS, and we know them [PKK, PYD, and YPG]. It is because you do not know any of them that there is a bloodbath in the region. What kind of partners are you? Impossible to understand."They [i.e. U.S. officials] listen quietly when we repeatedly explain, and then behind our back they make those statements. We don't hear anyone criticizing the PYD, an organization that uses children and women. On the contrary, countries that we consider allies are defending this organization."[10]Erdogan further said that Turkey would continue its fight against terrorism, and added: "The azans from our mosques will never be silenced. No one will be able to divide our people or fracture our country. La Galibe illallah ['there is no victor but Allah']."[11]U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner responded to Erdogan's recent statements the same day, confirming the U.S.'s non-recognition of the PYD and YPG as terrorist organizations: "There is a big difference between the PKK and the PYD/YPG. We do not share Turkey's view on the YPG, which is an effective fighting force on the ground, and a partner against ISIS. The responsibility for the bloodbath in Syria lies with ISIS and the Assad regime [i.e. not with the U.S., as alleged by Erdogan]."[12] Endnotes:[1] Cumhuriyet, February 2, 2016.[2] Diken, January 26, 2016.[3] Radikal, January 27, 2016.[4] Radikal, February 3, 2016.[5] Radikal, January 28, 2016.[6] The Syrian takeover of areas north of Aleppo led to tens of thousands of more Syrian refugees arriving at Turkey's borders.[7] Radikal, February 3, 2016.[8] Milliyet, February 7, 2016.[9] TodaysZaman, February 9, 2016.[10] Hurriyet, February 10, 2016.[11] Yeni Akit, February 10, 2016.[12] Hurriyet, February 10, 2016.





Regards Cees*** No Comment.After Syria intervention flop, what’s next for Erdogan?

In early February, the Russian-backed Syrian army cut the route from Aleppo to Turkey, a critical move that spurred President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s desire for a Turkish military incursion in Syria. Ever since 2011, Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu have unsuccessfully tried all means except a military intervention to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Yet toppling the regime was not the motive behind their latest advocacy of a military intervention. They knew this was already out of reach in September when Russia’s direct military involvement in Syria began. With the loss of the Aleppo route and the looming threat of a regime siege on the city, Erdogan’s objective shifted. He now sought to save Ankara from being totally sidelined from the Syrian equation and ensure it had some say on Syria’s future. Sending the Turkish army to Syria, he reckoned, was the only option left at hand to grab a prominent seat at the negotiating table.However, Erdogan and Davutoglu failed to enlist any support from the United States, as they did each time they brought up the issue in the past. The Turkish military, too, signaled through the media it was not in favor of an intervention. Ankara, which has positioned itself as a “Sunni power” in the conflict, watched how its ally Saudi Arabia failed to impress the other actors in the crisis when it declared “readiness” to send ground troops to Syria, provided the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (IS) made “a decision to have a ground component.”Ankara also reckoned that a unilateral Turkish incursion would generate a military response by Russia and spark a war between the two countries. According to reports, Moscow even warned Ankara it was prepared to use tactical nuclear weapons.Two weeks after the first reports in early February of its intentions and preparations for an intervention, Ankara began to backtrack. The first statement came from Erdogan’s spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin. “We’ve never said Turkish soldiers should enter Syria, or that American or Saudi troops should do so in a ground operation, or that the country should be occupied. … We have been and remain committed to joint action with the international community,” he said in a live television interview Feb. 20. Kalin stressed Ankara had long advocated a no-fly zone, but conceded, “This has become difficult with the Russian involvement.”Four days later, Davutoglu confirmed Ankara was not going to intervene, citing “Arab opposition” to Turkey. In an interview with Al Jazeera’s Arabic channel, he said, “Why did the Arab League condemn Turkey and urge it to pull out when Turkey went to Mosul to [help] liberate it and provide support? Who is going to guarantee that Arab countries will defend and support us if we intervene militarily in Syria?”Ankara’s Syrian policy — basically an attempt to topple Assad and install Islamists to power in Damascus — collapsed a long time ago. The Ankara-backed jihadis and other radical Islamists keep losing ground against the Russian-backed Syrian army and the People’s Protection Units (YPG), the armed force of the Syrian Kurds. Now that the intervention idea is also dropped, what options could be left for Erdogan and Davutoglu to sustain their claim in Syria?Davutoglu’s answer to one of Al Jazeera’s questions was quite telling in this regard. The question was put like this: “Your options are limited. Russia controls the skies over Syria. If you don’t want to confront Russia, your options are confined to short-range shelling across the border. Given that Russia supports the YPG as well, will you still do that?” Davutoglu replied with bravado, but his answer indicates Ankara does not have much at hand. “You say Russia controls the skies, but the hearts of the Syrian people are with us,” he said. “Even in the most recent attacks on Azaz, we retaliated for three days to YPG





positions for breaching our engagement rules.”Indeed, the shelling that lasted from Feb. 14 to Feb. 17 demonstrated that the

Ankara regime’s real concern in Syria’s border region is neither IS nor Jabhat al-Nusra but the Kurdish YPG, which it labels a terrorist organization.Due to the Russian threat, the Turkish air force has been unable to fly planes in Syrian air space. Now that a ground operation is also off the table, Ankara’s intervention capacity is limited to artillery fire with a range of 40 kilometers (25 miles), artillery rockets and its warplanes’ capability to strike from a distance.

Davutoglu’s historic confession Of course, the decision-makers in Ankara could be still assuming they hold a natural place in the Syrian equation for weakening the regime up until mid-2015, if not toppling it. This could be discerned in the answer Davutoglu gave to Al Jazeera’s interviewer when he asked him provocatively, “What is needed to happen so that Turkey and other countries intervene in support of the Syrian people?”Here is how Davutoglu replied: “How have the Syrian people defended themselves if they lack Turkish support? Would have they been able to defend Aleppo otherwise? If a true Syrian moderate opposition exists today, this is thanks to Turkey. If the regime doesn’t control all of the country’s territory today, this is thanks to Turkey and some other states. If the Syrian people are still in Tell Rifat, Aleppo and Azaz, defending their lands, after last week’s heavy bombardment that Russia conducted there with 500 sorties and without targeting IS, this is thanks to our support. Our support will continue.”But Davutoglu’s remarks constitute an open confession of how he and Erdogan have made Turkey a direct party to the Syrian war. If the Damascus regime has lost territory control because of Ankara’s role, Davutoglu’s words mean he assumes also the historic responsibility for the seizure of these territories by myriad jihadi and radical Islamist forces, including IS and Jabhat al-Nusra. If regime opponents have been able to defend themselves thanks to Turkey, as Davutoglu says, they could have done so only with weapons sent from Turkey. Hence, Davutoglu’s remarks constitute also an implicit acknowledgement of arms supplies to the rebels. And his pledge of continued support echoes like the continuation of arms supplies as well.In sum, Ankara has given up the idea of intervention, but the position it maintains keeps the risk of a military confrontation with Russia alive.http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/02/turkey-syria-davutoglu-made-historic-confessions.html




http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/02/turkey-syria-davutoglu-made-historic-confessions.html

http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/02/turkey-syria-davutoglu-made-historic-confessions.html

al-qaida chief ayman al-zawahiri the coordinator 2016 part 12-23-russia-turkey-9

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