Turkey Launches Deadly Airstrikes Against Syrian Forces

[Falcon29]

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This is not looking good for Turkey. One possibility is Erdogan is hesitant to give orders to intervene due to possible repercussions and backlash that may end in another coup against him. I don't know when Turkey was last in war but if they got into war with Russia/Syria/Iran inside of Syria it would be controversial enough to build coup case against him.

 

[Falcon29]

Syrian army is losing men too but it is making gains in Idlib. Erdogan plans to meet with Russian, German and French leaders on March 5 for a summit around situation in Idlib. So safe to say it looks like Idlib will be fully recovered by the Syrian regime.

 

[Falcon29]

@Berke2 @starlord @BATMAN @Indos @Gripen9

Reports of 32 Turkish soldiers killed in Russian or Syrian airstrikes in Idlib. Turkish gov't goes into emergency meeting.

 

[Falcon29]

Turkish gov't sources initially confirmed 9 Turkish soldiers killed and it has now risen to 22 soldiers killed. Europe has disputes with Turkey and unlikely to come to their support.

Meanwhile US position is what I would call developing depending on how situation plays out. US interests and US allies interests could be at stake here.

 

[space cadet]

Turkey readies for conflict with Russia in Syria

Confronted with a Syrian-Russian attack on Thursday that killed dozens of Turkish soldiers, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is likely to launch a counteroffensive in Syria's contested Idlib governorate this weekend. This is likely to end the burgeoning Russia-Turkey alliance and lead to increased…

www.washingtonexaminer.com

Confronted with a Syrian-Russian attack on Thursday that killed dozens of Turkish soldiers, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is likely to launch a counteroffensive in Syria's contested Idlib governorate this weekend. This is likely to end the burgeoning Russia-Turkey alliance and lead to increased bloodletting.


Erdogan is holding an emergency summit Thursday evening following the attack on a Turkish army position in Idlib. But it doesn't matter whether Russian or Syrian pilots, or pilots from both nations, flew the mission that killed the Turkish soldiers. Bashar Assad follows Russian orders as to whether and which Turkish forces he is allowed to attack. Russia also provides critical targeting intelligence and logistics support to identify Turkish forces it wants to attack.

Still, Erdogan is the one to blame here. In the delusional belief that he could forge a true strategic partnership with Putin, he spent the last three years sucking up to the Russian president. The result has been a significantly damaged Turkish relationship with the United States and its NATO allies, and Russia has taken full advantage to undermine Turkish interests in Syria. Very predictably, Putin has systematically shredded his cease-fire commitments to Erdogan and turned a brutal bloodletting campaign loose against Idlib's population. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of hospitals and schools have been targeted in a Russian-Syrian-Iranian effort to massacre civilians and force the surrender of rebel formations in Idlib.

Judged against his own carefully shaped autobiography as a grand Kemal Ataturk-style leader of Turks and Sunni Muslims in the Middle East, Erdogan looks weak at a time where he can ill afford it.

Now backed into a corner, Erdogan knows that he cannot allow this assault on his presidency and nation to go unmet. This means Putin is also taking a big gamble.

Erdogan's government is suddenly seeking to reconstruct its relationship with the U.S. Evincing as much, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and his Turkish counterpart spoke by phone on Thursday. The Trump administration rightly hopesthat this is an opportunity to undo the last few years and rebuild a long-standing strategic alliance. The U.S. is also rightly pushing back against Russian escalations against its forces in eastern Syria.

Putin will next try to scare Erdogan into submission. But in return for Turkey's commitment to abandon its purchase of the Russian S-400 missile system, the U.S. should support a NATO deployment of Patriot air defense systems to the Turkish-Syrian border and support Erdogan with intelligence in Idlib. The U.S. should also push the European Union to adopt sanctions that will bury Assad's economy.

Ultimately, what Russia, Assad, and Iran are doing to the people of Idlib is a moral outrage. To support our erstwhile Turkish ally and mitigate humanitarian suffering and associated refugee flows, we have an interest in helping Turkey put the Russians on their back foot.

 

[Falcon29]

 

[Falcon29]

 

[starlord]

@Berke2 @starlord @BATMAN @Indos @Gripen9

Reports of 32 Turkish soldiers killed in Russian or Syrian airstrikes in Idlib. Turkish gov't goes into emergency meeting.

If Turkey went into a full on Conflict which involves Russia than there is a chance US might be tempted to step in, and once again the turf will get hot, A lot of players are on the move in Syria , from Iranians to Qatar , From Turkey to Russia , from UAE to USA . I think the coming days will be hard on Poor Syrian people , all that chaos because of 2 parties 1) Asshead and 2) Iran and its Proxy .

 

[Scorpion]

If Turkey went into a full on Conflict which involves Russia than there is a chance US might be tempted to step in, and once again the turf will get hot, A lot of players are on the move in Syria , from Iranians to Qatar , From Turkey to Russia , from UAE to USA . I think the coming days will be hard on Poor Syrian people , all that chaos because of 2 parties 1) Asshead and 2) Iran and its Proxy .

I don't think the US will come to the rescue. Trump is fed up with the childish attitude of Erdogan threatening Europe of human waves, buying the S-400 despite being a NATO ally and so on. As a result of his immature policy, Turkey got kicked from the F-35 program. Now Russia is slaughtering Turkish in Syria and along the border. Turkey does not have an air defense system beside the S-400 which they can not use because they rely on Russian assistance in operating the system. Russia will not operate the S-400 against themselves. Now Turkey is crying for the US to come to help them get out of this miserable situation they put themselves in.

 

[space cadet]

I don't think the US will come to the rescue. Trump is fed up with the childish attitude of Erdogan threatening Europe of human waves, buying the S-400 despite being a NATO ally and so on. As a result of his immature policy, Turkey got kicked from the F-35 program. Now Russia is slaughtering Turkish in Syria and along the border. Turkey does not have an air defense system beside the S-400 which they can not use because they rely on Russian assistance in operating the system. Russia will not operate the S-400 against themselves. Now Turkey is crying for the US to come to help them get out of this miserable situation they put themselves in.

I sure hope not, Erdogan treated the US as a bad step child for the past 2 to 3 yrs, making his friendship with Putin, well now you are facing him, do it on your own

 

[Scorpion]

I sure hope not

Nothing comes without a price, Trump will sure teach Erdogan a lesson he should never forget. He got his ass handed to him in Syria, Lybia, and inside Turkey after he got it handed to him by Trump long ago. Stupidity as its best.

 

[starlord]

I don't think the US will come to the rescue. Trump is fed up with the childish attitude of Erdogan threatening Europe of human waves, buying the S-400 despite being a NATO ally and so on. As a result of his immature policy, Turkey got kicked from the F-35 program. Now Russia is slaughtering Turkish in Syria and along the border. Turkey does not have an air defense system beside the S-400 which they can not use because they rely on Russian assistance in operating the system. Russia will not operate the S-400 against themselves. Now Turkey is crying for the US to come to help them get out of this miserable situation they put themselves in.

Geopolitics does not work like this my Friend, we have seen worse enemies becoming friends for larger benefit, US will make sure that the one place where Russians dig its claws in ME will be gone, even if it means working with Erdogan, I am still not against Turkey as their eastern Border is a shit show , plus they have to make sure to control the Kurds which holds a huge chunk of land and tons of Weapons thanks to US .Turkey's idea of a buffer zone was right in my opinion cause Syria is alot like Afghanistan now, its a law less piece of land, where its free for all , Plus if you see its the same situation when US,KSA ,Pakistan help Taliban against the USSR, now Turkey is helping Sunni Militia's against the Asshead, Iran and Russians . They Conflict between Turkey and Russians will bring some sort of reaction from EU and US , only time will tell what it is gonna be .

 

[space cadet]

Turkey said Friday that it ordered troops stationed along the Syrian border to stand down and allow refugees to cross into the European Union after a Syrian government airstrike killed 33 Turkish troops in what was seen as a major escalation in the conflict, a report said.

FILE - In this Feb. 14, 2020, file photo, Turkish troops and artillery prepare to enter Syria, in Reyhanli, Hatay, Turkey. (AP Photo, File)

A report said that hundreds of refugees could be seen flocking to the Greece and Bulgaria borders.

"We have decided, effective immediately, not to stop Syrian refugees from reaching Europe by land or sea," an official told Reuters. "All refugees, including Syrians, are now welcome to cross into the European Union."

The decision by Ankara was widely seen as an attempt to pressure EU countries in assisting in the conflict.

The deaths, which came in an attack late Thursday in northeast Syria, were a serious escalation in the direct conflict between Turkish and Russia-backed Syrian forces that has been waged since early February.

GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The attack also sharply raises the risk of direct military confrontation between Turkey, a NATO member, and Russia. Ambassadors from NATO countries were holding emergency talks on Friday at the request of Turkey, a member of the alliance.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

 

[Falcon29]

Turkish forces seem more active in Idlib now and they published numerous videos of strikes drone strikes against Syrian army tanks/missile systems and other assets. Apparently Erdogan and Putin had a talk over phone as well and will meet in the coming week. Afterwards there is a risk of escalation if no agreement or ceasefire is reached.

 

[Falcon29]

Turkey said Friday that it ordered troops stationed along the Syrian border to stand down and allow refugees to cross into the European Union after a Syrian government airstrike killed 33 Turkish troops in what was seen as a major escalation in the conflict, a report said.

FILE - In this Feb. 14, 2020, file photo, Turkish troops and artillery prepare to enter Syria, in Reyhanli, Hatay, Turkey. (AP Photo, File)

A report said that hundreds of refugees could be seen flocking to the Greece and Bulgaria borders.

"We have decided, effective immediately, not to stop Syrian refugees from reaching Europe by land or sea," an official told Reuters. "All refugees, including Syrians, are now welcome to cross into the European Union."

The decision by Ankara was widely seen as an attempt to pressure EU countries in assisting in the conflict.

The deaths, which came in an attack late Thursday in northeast Syria, were a serious escalation in the direct conflict between Turkish and Russia-backed Syrian forces that has been waged since early February.

GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The attack also sharply raises the risk of direct military confrontation between Turkey, a NATO member, and Russia. Ambassadors from NATO countries were holding emergency talks on Friday at the request of Turkey, a member of the alliance.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

I understand they cannot afford more refugees but I do not favor this idea and prefer the ME nations take care of the refugees. The thing is most ME nations don't want them because they can't afford them or fear political problems. It's an overall lame situation that arises from incompetence of the regional gov'ts. The region has been unstable for decades so Arab League should have entity that deals with refugees. Another option is those refugees go back to Syria but they will face abuse with those sectarian militias roaming freely in Syria.

Anyhow based on what I'm seeing on twitter it looks like a full blown clash between the Turkish army and Syrian army this could get ugly by next week. Russia doesn't want to be seen as unable to assist its ally in recovering one of its important regions(Idlib) and may act rash as a result.