Turkey Insists on Military Presence in Syria and Iraq
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar announced the continuation of military presence in Syria and Iraq until terrorist threats are eliminated and border security is ensured.
Translated by Qiyas from النهار — Original source
Ankara (Agencies): Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler announced that his country will keep its troops in Syria and Iraq until the security of its borders with both neighbors is fully guaranteed. Speaking to the Agence France-Presse, Guler said, “We maintain our military presence in Iraq and Syria,” adding, “When we are assured that the necessary conditions regarding regional and border security have been met, the status of our deployment sites and presence in the region will be reviewed.”
For years, Turkey has deployed troops in northern Syria and Iraq to contain the threat posed by elements of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Islamic State (ISIS) along its borders. However, the situation has changed in the past two years, following the assumption of power by a new government in Syria after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, and as Turkey moved to close the chapter on its decades-long conflict with the PKK.
Guler stated, “Once the terrorist threat in the region is completely eliminated, border security is ensured, and the state’s authority is fully and uniformly extended across all of Syria without exception, the status of our forces will be reassessed.”
When the former Syrian regime fell, Turkey had deployed between 16,000 and 18,000 soldiers in northern Syria, according to a Turkish official. Since then, no reliable figures have been provided regarding the number of troops deployed in Syria, although a Turkish official reported last month that talks were underway to determine their legal status in the country.
However, Guler declined to discuss any future plans. He said, “At this stage, it would not be appropriate to make a prior assessment regarding deployment plans or military bases that have not yet been announced.” He added that “addressing issues related to the future status of Turkish forces in Syria will take into account Syrian sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual understanding between the two countries, on-the-ground security conditions, and the evolution of the terrorist threat.”
Turkish forces are conducting operations in northern Iraq against the PKK, while maintaining military bases there, a situation that casts a shadow over Ankara-Baghdad relations. Turkish troops have been deployed there since 2015 and now number between 800 and 1,000 personnel, according to an Iraqi security source cited by the agency.
