Turkey, Syrian government may cooperate on the ground | CPT PPP Coverage

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Turkey, Russia and the Syrian government are working on carrying out joint missions on the ground in Syria, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Friday.

“There are two prongs. First the ongoing political talks that can be held anywhere,” Akar told private NTV television on Friday. “The second is that coordination and work that we are currently doing with Russia on the ground can be carried out in tripartite format.”

His remarks came after the talks held between the three countries’ defense chiefs and intelligence officials on Wednesday, marking the first high-level talks between Ankara and Damascus after a decade. 

Akar gave few details, but added that “it was yet premature” to talk about joint operations against the groups that Ankara considers “terrorists.” Under a 2019 deal, Turkey and Russia have started joint patrols on the ground in four different regions in northern Syria, including in the countryside of the Kurdish stronghold Kobane and  along the M4 highway linking the country’s east and west and cutting through the strategic Syrian towns.

“We have set our goal. Our goal is terrorism,” Akar said.  

Turkey considers Syrian Kurdish groups to be terrorists and conducted four ground offensives into the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces-controlled areas in northern Syria. The recent thaw between Ankara and Damascus comes as Ankara threatens to launch a fifth offensive against SDF-held areas amid ongoing Turkish air campaigns. 

“We once again stressed that we do not have any problem with any ethnic, religious groups or sects,” Akar said.

Ankara, which severed its diplomatic ties with Damascus in 2012, backs Sunni Syrian rebels fighting against Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad government. Turkey controls a large chunk of territory in the war-torn country’s north in cooperation with armed Syrian opposition groups.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s announcement that Turkey was no longer aiming to oust the Assad government in August set off mass protests in Syria’s rebel-held areas, with some protestors burning Turkish national flag. 

“We have Syrian brothers living in Syria that we are in constant contact with. Everybody should know that we will not take any action which will harm them,” Akar added.