United States President Donald Trump did it again. His unpredictability has just become a norm when shaping U.S. foreign policy. Although he denies it was not a surprise move, Trump’s sudden decision for a complete pullout of all U.S. troops from Syria, despite the Pentagon’s continuous statements that the job has not been done yet, had an astonishing impact on the international community as well as regional actors.
An important turning point in the seven-year Syrian civil war was observed in Geneva on Dec. 18 as relentless efforts of United Nations’ Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura made a significant progress for the establishment of a council tasked to write a new constitution for Syria.
With less than four months to go for the local elections, all political parties seem to intensify their works to establish the best alliance and shoose the best candidates for success.
Amid signs of an impending operation against the YPG, the Syrian offshoot of the PKK, at certain points on the eastern side of Turkish-Syrian border, Turkey conducted a major aerial strike with 20 aircraft against multiple PKK positions in Sinjar and Mount Karacak regions in northern Iraq late Dec. 13.
According to the UN, war-torn Yemen is on the brink of a major catastrophe as nearly three-quarters of its 22 million population need humanitarian aid and protection. The conditions on one of the poorest nations of the world have drastically worsened in the last seven years.
Turkey and the European Union started official talks on Nov 29 in Brussels on how to best use the second three billion Euros to be provided by Brussels for 4 million Syrians being hosted in the former’s territories since the beginning of the civil war in 2011.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will embark on a week-long trip to South America on Nov. 28 where he will attend the G-20 Summit in Buenos Aires and will pay official visits to Venezuela and Paraguay. Along with other world leaders, it’s probable that Erdoğan will hold a bilateral meeting with Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the margins of the summit.
The European Union-Turkey High-Level Political Dialogue Meeting, which normally has to convene every six months, has taken place in the Turkish capital after a 16-month break with the participation of EU High Representative Federica Mogherini and enlargement commissioner Johannes Hahn hosted by Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu.
Turkey’s Syria pre-occupation has many fronts. For eastern Syria, its concerns are on the YPG’s presence and its cooperation with the United States. For Manbij, Turkey is making an effort to implement a deal with the U.S. for the withdrawal of YPG troops the east of the Euphrates River.
