Russia expected that Türkiye would back down from a possible operation against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern Syria, while a former US official warned of a “collapse” of relations between Washington and Ankara if the operation went ahead.
In a meeting chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday, the Turkish Cabinet discussed developments in northern Syria and the consultations that took place with Moscow last week.
Turkish media quoted the Russian Presidential Special Envoy to the Middle East and Africa, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, as saying that his country continued to persuade the Turkish side to refrain from launching the ground operation in northern Syria, stressing that there have been successes in this direction.
The Russian President’s special envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, pointed to a possibility that Türkiye “refrains from carrying out a ground operation in Syria,” although Ankara did not provide such assurances.
In a phone call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Sunday, Erdogan emphasized the priority of clearing the Syrian border with Türkiye of “terrorists” at a depth of at least 30 kilometers.
In its meeting on Monday, the Turkish Cabinet discussed the situation in northern Syria and the developments on the border, as well as the result of consultations and contacts with Moscow and Washington.
Meanwhile, the former US envoy to Syria, James Jeffrey, warned of the collapse of Turkish-American relations due to Ankara's threats to launch a ground operation against the SDF.
In an article published in Foreign Policy, Jeffrey said that a Turkish incursion into Syria could undermine operations against ISIS, especially that the SDF guarded thousands of prisoners from the organization and their family members.
Last week, Turkish-Russian consultations were held in Istanbul over a possible Turkish military operation against the positions of the SDF in northern Syria, and Russia’s efforts to achieve rapprochement between Türkiye and Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
