Skip to main content

Whispers of Change In Turkey's Syria Policy

Tulin Daloglu reports on how, beneath the rhetoric of Turkey's hard line on Syria, there are signs that Ankara might be willing to call on Syria's opposition to show greater flexibility in dealing with the Syrian government.
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine Erdogan pose with Syrian refugee triplet brothers whose names are Recep, Tayyip and Erdogan as they visit a refugee camp near Akcakale border crossing on the Turkish-Syrian border, southern Sanliurfa province, December 30, 2012. REUTERS/Kayhan Ozer/Prime Minister's Press Office/Handout (TURKEY  - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) ) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS

Friedrich Nietzsche said that we can only think those thoughts for which we have words. Sometimes we have words, but we do not have satisfactory explanations as to why things happen. Often, real understanding eludes us.

This is true of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s unwaveringly tough rhetoric on Syrian regime. It neither helps to end the bloodshed in the country, nor is there a real threat of a Turkish military incursion into Syria. But the question remains as to how Turkey will continue to strike a balance without falling into Assad’s quagmire as Ankara intimately engages with it.

Access the Middle East news and analysis you can trust

Join our community of Middle East readers to experience all of Al-Monitor, including 24/7 news, analyses, memos, reports and newsletters.

Subscribe

Only $100 per year.