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Ankara warms to idea of political solution in Syria

Ankara seems to be growing more amenable to a solution that includes the Syrian regime, unhappy about perceptions that it has used the international effort against the Islamic State as an excuse to resume strikes against the Kurdistan Workers Party.
A woman walks along a street in the southeastern Turkish town of Silopi in Sirnak province, near the Turkish-Iraqi border crossing of Habur, Turkey, August 7, 2015. Five people were killed in eastern Turkey on Friday in a series of clashes between security forces and Kurdish militants, part of a surge in violence that has put further strain on a fragile peace process between Ankara and the rebels. Three people were killed and seven wounded during clashes between police and militants of the Kurdistan Workers
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Disturbed by the bad press it is receiving at home and abroad and continuous questions about its commitment to fighting the Islamic State (IS), the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is signaling that Ankara is about to change gears and contribute more visibly to the international effort against the jihadist group.

Ankara also seems to have come around to acknowledging that defeating the regime of President Bashar al-Assad militarily will not be possible as long as it continues to get support from Russia and Iran, and is saying it supports a political settlement that would include input from Moscow and Tehran.

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