What does US-Turkey military deal really entail?
Turkish incursion into Syria thwarted: Washington said “no” and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan bowed.
When Americans firmly said “no” to a possible Turkish incursion in northeastern Syria, President Tayyip Erdogan bowed.
That was my quick assessment after reading the statement on joint military talks regarding Syria issued by the US Embassy in Ankara following three days of talks.
The statement came Aug. 7. Three days earlier, on Aug. 4, Erdogan had unequivocally announced the imminent Turkish invasion of Syria’s northeast, which is under the control of Syrian Kurdish groups.
Turkey has been massing troops along the long Syrian border for weeks, and Turkish leaders have been persistently talking about military intervention. Thus, Erdogan’s statement Aug. 4 was seen as the natural outcome of the military preparations on the ground. He said, “Patience has limits.” That implied that he would no longer place value in American promises regarding the situation in the “east of the Euphrates.”
