Top Turkish, NATO, UK military officials discuss Syria

ANKARA

Chief of General Staff Gen. Metin Gürak held phone discussions on Dec. 8 with NATO's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, Gen. Christopher Cavoli, and the U.K.'s Chief of Defense Staff, Adm. Tony Radakin, to address the rapidly evolving situation in Syria.

The talks came as anti-regime armed groups in Syria made sweeping territorial gains, effectively ending the Assad family's more than 50-year rule.

Clashes erupted on Nov. 27 between government forces and opposition groups in rural areas west of Aleppo, a key city in northern Syria. By Nov. 30, anti-regime forces had seized control of most of Aleppo's city center and all of Idlib province.

Their advance continued, capturing Hama and Homs before reaching Damascus over the weekend. The fall of the capital was swift, with regime forces losing all control of Damascus by early on Dec. 7.

Meanwhile, a senior Biden administration official said on Dec. 8 that the U.S. has been in “full-spectrum engagement” with Türkiye amid the developments.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, pointed to the ongoing dialogue between high-level U.S. officials — including Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, CIA Director Bill Burns and Secretary of State Antony Blinken — and their Turkish counterparts.

"The focus here is a new Syria and a transition away from Assad," the official said.

"That is going to take an enormous effort from everybody. We think that should be the focus of those with an interest in building a better and future Syria.. Additional conflicts, additional fronts opening up are not in anybody's interest."

Asked about potential engagement with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a U.S. and U.N. designated terrorist organization that has led one of the most significant anti-regime offensives, the official said the group "obviously will be an important component” of the transition in Syria.

"I think we will intend to engage with them appropriately and with U.S. interests in mind," he said, noting that the group's terrorist designation "is something that we'll have to look to down the line."

"I think what we'll be looking for, in particular, is some of the statements that have been made actually being put into action."