Link to Article: https://apnews.com/article/syria-security-conference-turkey-pkk-sdf-kurds-ceac41eca1aed0f49975c897637d07e1
The Turkish foreign minister said Saturday that Turkey would reconsider its military presence in Northeastern Syria if the new Syrian leader eliminates a Kurdish militant group deemed a terrorist threat by the U.S, Turkey, and the European Union. At the Munich Security Conference, Hakan Fidan spoke these words along with the Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani who chose to decline comments on these remarks. Fidan has expressed these feeling before. Al-Shaibani spoke of disarming all non-state faction including Kurdish ones within Syrias new government. Different forces have been fighting with in Syria including the Syrian Democratic Forces, backed by the U.S, and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party. Syrian leaders have been responsive to the idea of integration of all militant groups into one national army, however the SDF has refused.
Syria has had Turkish influence within the country for a time, and is seeking to throw off the proverbial Turkish yoke as it attempts to grow and stabilize a country that has been shaken by war and uprising. However the Kurdistan Workers’ Party has been deemed a threat by Turkey, and Turkey may pursue the elimination of this group prompting more military and violent actions in the region. Syria is attempting to centralize its military and bring factions into order. A strong Syria may also pull on other Middle Eastern countries as they see them as a rival, or a more competent neighboring country on the rise. Any rising power within this region of the Middle East is going to be noted within regional states and the international community.
Syria is a multi-state nation with many ethnic peoples and minorities including the Kurdish people who lack a country to call their own. The Kurds seek independence and a portion of territory but it will not be allotted to them within the region. Therefore the seek to create it through military force hence Turkeys warning to Syria over Kurdish militants. This article continues the widespread belief that the Middle East is a shatterbelt region with an unstable political and social realm.