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Turkey faces serious odds in Manbij and Idlib

Despite many rounds of talks with Washington and Moscow, Ankara has still made little headway regarding its plans for northern Syria.
A Turkish military vehicle drives at Manbij countryside, Syria December 29, 2018. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC11D6A7B320

Turkey finds itself in an increasingly difficult situation on two fronts in Syria. Its key priorities have boiled down to trying to keep Russian and Syrian regime forces out of Idlib on the one hand and securing the departure of US forces from Manbij and territories east of the Euphrates River on the other.

The two topics will continue to drain Turkey’s diplomatic energies in the coming weeks and months and require subtle negotiations with the United States and Russia if Ankara is to make any headway in its plans for northern Syria.

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