Implementation and integration will form the keywords of Ankara’s stance toward the deal signed by the Syrian government led by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and the PKK's Syrian offshoot YPG-dominated SDF.
Following the deal, which marks a major breakthrough that would bring most of Syria under the control of the government, all eyes turned toward Türkiye and the stance it would pursue. Ankara is meanwhile expected to preserve its cautious policy.
The process of integrating former PKK/YPG terrorist members into Syria’s army and security forces will be closely followed by Ankara. Türkiye advocates that these forces should not focus on a specific area and should be scattered in a homogenous way. Furthermore, Türkiye had previously underlined that foreigners within the SDF must leave the country.
The SDF, a U.S.-backed armed wing of the YPG, currently controls one-third of Syria's territory, including most of the country's oil and gas fields. The YPG uses the name SDF to give itself an air of legitimacy.
The deal to be implemented by the end of the year would bring all border crossings with Iraq and Türkiye in the northeast, airports and oil fields under the control of the central government.
Ankara has often argued that fighting the problem of terrorism in the Middle East necessitates a joint effort by regional countries.
Most recently, in Amman, Jordan following a meeting by the delegations of Türkiye, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, the four countries vowed to cooperate in counterterrorism efforts.
“The participants agreed to launch a joint operation center for cooperation and coordination to fight Daesh, to support existing international efforts aimed at eradicating this organization and eliminating the threat it poses to the security of Syria, the region and the world, and dealing with Daesh prisons,” a joint statement said.
Following the SDF-Sharaa deal, a Defense Ministry official said on Wednesday that operations by armed forces against terrorists in northern Syria are continuing.
The official did not provide details on the location of the operations.
Ankara has mounted multiple operations against the PKK/YPG in Syria since 2016.
