Turkey’s military operation turning into diplomatic war
As the military front becomes perceptibly static in Turkey’s Operation Peace Spring, the center of gravity shifts to diplomatic front, seemingly catching Ankara underprepared.
There are four fronts of Operation Peace Spring: the military front on the ground, diplomatic front, the optical front (in the eyes of Western public opinion and the international community) and the domestic front.
The operational picture on the ninth day of incursion as of Oct. 17 is: The Turkish army and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, in a coordinated operation, secured the control of a 100 kilometer by 30 kilometer (62 by 19 mile) area between Tell Abyad-Ras al-Ain and the M4 highway. That corresponds to about 20% of the 35-kilometer deep zone Turkey wants to control between Manbij and the Iraqi border.
