Syria-Turkey rapprochement efforts face obstacles about Kurds, refugees
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Rapprochement efforts between Syria and Turkey face difficulties about addressing the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the return of the refugees to Syria, a UAE newspaper said on Monday.
The National reported citing a Syrian source who was informed by Turkish intelligence that “Erdogan agreed to go with the Iraqi request to try to solve the problems with Assad, knowing that Iran is behind it.”
Recently, Syrian and Turkish top officials have stated that their countries can restore relations and that there are no obstacles that may hinder the issue.
A few days ago, the Syrian semi-official al-Watan newspaper noted to an upcoming meeting Syrian and Turkish officials in Baghdad, Iraq’s capital.
Ties between Syria and Turkey worsened after the start of the Syrian conflict in March 2011 as protests called for the ousting of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The Syrian government forces cracked down on the protests, while Turkey supported armed opposition groups, leading to a war later on.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accepted a proposal from Iraqi officials, on behalf of Iran, to establish a crossing point for goods between Turkish-occupied and government-held areas in Syria, the source said.
Meanwhile, Turkish officials insist that the government takes offensive actions against the People’s Protection Units (YPG), a mainly Kurdish force within the formation of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is backed by the U.S.-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS.
“The Turkish view is that Assad wants all the advantages of rehabilitation without doing anything to earn it,” the source said. “He also does not want to confront the United States in any serious way.”
Another issue is a disagreement about ensuring that refugees can safely go back to Syria, the source added.
In the past years, Turkey has occupied areas along the northern Syrian border where it has deported thousands of Syrian refugees who had originally sought safety in Turkey.
Turkey is also encouraging Syrian refugees to return to areas controlled by the Syrian government, but has not guaranteed the government forces would not persecute the returnees.