Turkey not expected to revise Syria policy
Analysts predict Ankara will continue to refuse active involvement against the Islamic State and retain its current policy until Washington spells out its plans for Syria’s future.
Turkey remains in a difficult situation in the US-led fight against the Islamic State (IS). Ankara’s efforts to keep the focus on regime change in Damascus gained little traction at the 60-nation meeting in Brussels on Dec. 3 called by US Secretary of State John Kerry to assess progress in “degrading and destroying” IS.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s reluctance to get involved militarily in the fight against IS continues to fuel doubts about its commitment to the anti-IS coalition. Allegations that Ankara remains soft on IS — if not aiding it covertly — also continue to hound the government of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.
