Turkmen Terzi
Syria lost its territorial integrity since the civil war erupted in 2011. Presently, major European countries, together with the United States, back Kurdish forces in Syria, whilst Russia and Iran directly support the Bashar al-Assad regime. As a majority Sunni Muslim country, Türkiye’s main aim is to maintain historical and religious ties with Iraqi and Syrian Muslims.
Türkiye had already lost its land connection with Iraqi Arabs when Kurds in the country established their autonomy in a part of Northern Iraq that borders Türkiye. Syria’s Kurds also formed the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, also known as ‘Rojava’, alongside the Turkish border. Thus, Türkiye’s 1300 kilometres-long border with the Arab states Iraq and Syria are currently controlled by Kurdish armed groups. Türkiye built relatively strong ties with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) that rules the autonomous Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq.
However, Türkiye’s Syria border is controlled by the People’s Defense Units (YPG) and its political arm, the Democratic Union Party (PYD), which is the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) – the Kurdish group that has waged an armed struggle against Türkiye since 1984. Türkiye’s Islamist President Tayyip Erdogan’s main motivation behind carrying out a military operation in Syria is to maintain ties with Syrian Sunni Muslims.
Türkiye and Türkiye-backed opposition forces have managed to take control over the Syrian towns of Afrin, al-Bab, Azaz, Jarabulus, Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ayn. Hence, Ankara successfully prevented the unity of Kurdish cantons in Syria.
Türkiye is currently host to around 3.5 million Syrian refugees, and the Erdogan administration plans to send around one million Syrian refugees, especially from crowded cities such as Istanbul, Ankara and Gaziantep, to towns in north-western and north-eastern Syria where Türkiye have authority. The Erdogan government plans on establishing commercial and industrial zones and building markets in order to improve the economic condition of refugees in these areas. Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu stated that Türkiye aims to construct 250,000 cinder block residences that are between 40 to 80 square meters, and some 100,000 of the residences are to be handed over to their beneficiaries by the end of this year.
The General Directorate of Turkish Post provides services in the Turkish-controlled Syrian towns of Azaz, Marea, al-Bab, Jarabulus, Afrin, and Ra'i for Turkish employees and Syrian citizens. The Turkish government has opened hospitals in Jarabulus, Azaz, al-Bab, Marea, and Ra'i and erected cell towers owned by Turk Telekom in Aleppo and Idlib's countryside. The Turkish electricity giant Akenerji built a power plant in Azaz and set up another electricity grid in Jarabulus and al-Bab. The Turkish Religious Affairs Directorate renovated hundreds of mosques in the region, and more than two hundred Turkish religious schools now operate in the Turkish-controlled zones. Turkish universities opened faculties in Afrin, al-Bab, and in Azaz.
The Islamist AKP does not wish to lose its connection with the Syrian Arabs the way Türkiye lost connection with the Balkan Muslims for many decade. Instead, it hopes to be the guardian of Syria’s Sunni Arabs. The Ottomans ruled Iraq for almost 300 hundred years and Syria for 400 hundred years. Conservative and nationalist Turkish leaders still claim sovereignty over some Iraqi cities such as Mosul and Kirkuk, while Sunni Türkiye does not get along with Bashar al-Assad's Alawite regime in Syria. It appears that the Erdoğan regime will continue to fight to maintain its influence in Syria.
The Star