Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gave an interview today (Wednesday) to Turkish media outlet Anadolu, where he said that "the aggressive actions of the forces attacking Syria, and especially of Israel, must cease immediately," according to a report by Ynet.
Erdogan added that if the IDF did not withdraw behind the border and leave Syria, "the consequences would have a negative influence on everyone."
Erdogan's Turkey provided critical backing to the alliance of rebel forces which brought down Syrian dictator Bashar Assad weeks ago, and he is increasingly interested in forming ties with the new government.
Turkey has proposed to aid in building up the new Syrian armed forces and investing in the country generally.
It is also interested in attacking the Kurdish autonomous zone in northeastern Syria, carved out during the Syrian Civil War, on the grounds that the armed forces there are "terrorists" that need to be extirpated. Forces backed by Turkey in Syria have engaged in hostilities with the Kurds since the fall of the Assad regime.
Israel, meanwhile, has been pushing for protecting the Kurds against attacks from Turkey or elsewhere. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar even briefed a group of pro-Israel influencers on the need to speak out in favor of the Kurds given their strategic situation and importance for Israel in the region.
A previous Ynet report stated that Israeli senior officials believe that Israel must maintain a "holding area" of 15 kilometers within Syrian territory, which the IDF will control to ensure that those loyal to the new regime cannot fire projectiles at the Golan Heights and beyond, as well as an "influence area" of 60 kilometers into the country where the IDF has intelligence control to ensure no threat develops against it.
The Israeli government's senior leadership - Prime Minister Netanyahu, Defense Minister Katz, and Foreign Minister Sa'ar - have all insisted on maintaining a presence in Syria at least until the situation "stabilizes" and a new security arrangement is found to replace the now defunct 1974 separation of forces agreement.
0 Comments