‘Unfriendly Takeover’: Turkey Offers to Train New Syrian Army While Maintaining Threat Against Kurds

Latest Developments

• Turkey’s ‘Unfriendly Takeover’ in Syria: Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler said on December 15 that Turkey is willing to provide military training for Syria’s army if requested by the country’s new authorities. “[Turkey] is ready to provide the necessary support if the new administration requests it,” Guler said. Despite Ankara denying that it provided support for Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) — a designated terrorist group that led the overthrow of former dictator Bashar al-Assad’s regime earlier this month — President-elect Donald Trump characterized the post-Assad situation as an “unfriendly takeover” by Turkey during a news conference on December 16.
• Turkey Aims to Eliminate Kurdish Forces: Turkey maintains a few thousand troops in northern Syria who have launched a brutal onslaught targeting Syria’s Kurdish minority, including the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Turkey considers the SDF a terrorist organization because it is led by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which maintains a connection to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party. In a television interview after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on December 13, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said, “The elimination of the YPG is our strategic goal.”
• Syria Still A Risk to Israel: Despite the overthrow of the Iran-allied Assad regime, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on December 15 that the “immediate risks [to Israel from Syria] have not disappeared and the recent developments in Syria are increasing the intensity of the threat.” Katz has previously called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan a “dictator” who “is slaughtering Kurds” while the world remains silent. Separately, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said on December 9 that the United States and other countries must safeguard minorities in Syria and that attacks against the Kurds, such as the recent occupation of the city of Manbij by the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army, “must stop.”

FDD Expert Response

“By offering military assistance, Turkey is pulling out all the stops to portray HTS as a legitimate political entity that should determine the political future of a post-Assad Syria. Erdogan wants the international community to overlook HTS’s existing designation as a terrorist organization by the United Nations, the United States, the European Union, and Turkey itself, which is rooted in ISIS and al-Qaeda. While grooming HTS as a governing force, Ankara is poised to prosecute a military campaign against the U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which has been instrumental in battling ISIS. Through Turkey’s ill-considered actions, the prospects of a stable and free Syria for all its peoples stand on a knife’s edge.”— Sinan Ciddi, Non-Resident Senior Fellow

“Turkey’s interest in training and supporting a new Syrian government defense force is far from benevolent. Turkey desires a government-backed security service in Syria that will further its goals, including fighting the Kurds and providing Ankara with a point of leverage with the new government. A security apparatus in Syria that also includes elements hostile to Israel would also benefit Turkey in the middle and long run.” — Tyler Stapleton, FDD Action Director of Congressional Relations

FDD Background and Analysis

“Assad’s Enemies Are Not Our Friends,” by Bill Roggio and Will Selber

“Turkish-Backed Syrian National Army Seizes Manbij from U.S. Allied, Kurdish-Led Forces,” FDD Flash Brief

 “Are Kurds under threat amid civil war resurgence in Syria?” By Seth J. Frantzman

“Erdogan Gets His ‘Leader of the Muslim World’ Moment,” by Steven A.Cook and Sinan Ciddi

“America Must Stand with Syria’s Kurds,” by Sinan Ciddi