Turkish-Kurdish conflict

A year after local polls, Turkey’s Kurds left with only third of gains

Not even the coronavirus outbreak has slowed Ankara’s crackdown on local administrations held by Turkey’s main pro-Kurdish party, which, many now fear, will continue until the last one is seized.

Turkey

Archive Upfront

from Mar 26, 2020

Turkey appears to want more than Syria’s oil

Like Moscow and Washington, Ankara seems to be coveting the oilfields of Deir ez-Zor in Syrian Kurdistan, which Kurds fear would give Turkey an opening to take over the entire Rojava area.

Syria

SDF calls for humanitarian truce in Syria amid coronavirus crisis

Following the lead of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces call for a cease-fire in order for all warring parties to combat COVID-19 instead.

Syria

Justice Department ordered Turkish TV station to register as foreign agent

The decision came amid an intensifying push by the Donald Trump administration and Congress to get foreign media outlets to register.

Qatar

Turkey’s geostrategic orientation at crossroads amid Idlib tangle

Confusion prevails in Ankara on how to resolve the entangled Idlib crisis and the choices it will ultimately make could bear on its geostrategic orientations in the coming years.

Syria

Erdogan turns to oil in a bid to salvage Syria policy

Turkey’s president eyes oil-related bargains in Syria after failing to achieve his stated objectives in Idlib and acquiescing to a new deal with Russia in the rebel stronghold.

Syria

Russia explores way to draw UAE, Saudi Arabia to its Syria policies

As relations with Turkey stall, Moscow seeks ways to engage with the Saudis and Emiratis to have them back in the Syrian game.

Saudi Arabia

Idlib and the collapse of Erdogan’s foreign policy

Gambling on Russia to secure results in Syria turns out to be Ankara’s biggest miscalculation

Syria

Intel: US leans on Turkey despite tensions

The top US military commander in Europe told Congress today that Turkey remains a key ally despite the Donald Trump administration’s decision to boot the NATO partner from the F-35 program after it took delivery of the Russian S-400 air defense system last summer.

Syria

Intel: What's behind Erdogan's latest threat of imminent attack in Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the parliament yesterday that an operation against Syrian government forces in the rebel-held province of Idlib was “a matter of moments” after talks between Turkish officials and their Russian counterparts in Moscow failed to deliver “the desired result.”

Syria

Why is Turkish Cypriot leader declared ‘enemy’ in Turkey?

The leader of the Cypriot Turks angered Ankara in October for criticizing the Turkish incursion into Syria, but all hell has broken loose since he recently said that any move by Turkey to annex Northern Cyprus would be a “horrible” prospect.

Turkey

Turkey grows erratic as clashes in Idlib escalate

The Turkish government seems increasingly irrational as clashes intensify between Syrian government forces and Turkey-backed rebels in Idlib.

Syria