Syria in Transition

The real motive behind Turkey’s offer of dialogue with Damascus might be to simply hash out a diplomatic understanding that consolidates Syria’s de facto division in a face-saving manner for Assad. If it leads to increased cross-line trade with regime areas and pressures the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to pick a side, all the better. Given that talk about normalization threatens the US’s entire Syria strategy in regard to ostracizing Assad, Erdogan might also try to use the public debate he has ignited to force the US into serious negotiations about the future of Syria’s north and east.

Read more: https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/in-syria-cutting-and-running-is-not-on-the-cards-for-turkey/