Although there are many participants currently in the Syrian Civil War, a recent addition that has the potential to cause disaster for the region is the direct involvement in the conflict of Turkey. As a nation, Turkey has strained relations with many of its Allies and adversaries. The actions of president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan following the unsuccessful coup attempt in July, perpetrated by members of Turkey’s mostly secular armed forces, has been to level blame at the United States, both for alleged participation of the CIA in planning of the coup, and for harboring who president Erdoğan blames for the coup attempt-Fethullah Gülen,a moderate Islamic cleric who holds much sway over many in Turkey, and who has been exiled to the United States after falling out of favor with the Turkish ruling party. As a result of these actions, many in the U.S. and NATO, of whom Turkey is a key member, have criticized the Turkish president for acting like a dictator.
As Turkey has sent its troops across the Syrian border, this increases the possibility they will encounter Syrian and Russian forces in a combat situation. Following several incidents in which both countries’ military aircraft have been shot down by Turkey, neither president Putin nor president Assad have had warm relations with the country. Although Turkey, like all factions in the Syrian civil war, is opposed to ISIS, they do not support the Kurdish rebels that both Washington and Moscow support. As Turkey is also a member of NATO, a conflict involving Syria or Russia and Turkey could draw in the rest of the alliance by triggering article five of the Washington Treaty, which requires member states to come to the aid of the attacked nation. All of these elements could mix together to elevate the Syrian civil war into an inter-state war, with continued Turkish involvement in the conflict.