Turkey should be helped to intervene over Aleppo ... · 9/27/2016 · Turkey should be helped to...
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INFORM • INSPIRE • ENTERTAIN • EMPOWER SIEMENS DISHWASHER SE60T390GB/01... DISCOVER MORE EDITION US NEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT WELLNESS WHAT’S WORKING VOICES VIDEO ALL SECTIONS CONTRIBUTOR Turkey should be helped to intervene over Aleppo 09/27/2016 09:17 am ET Lord David Owen Former British foreign secretary This post is hosted on the Huffington Post’s Contributor platform. Contributors control their own work and post freely to our site. If you need to flag this entry as abusive, send us an email . In repeated interviews and articles on the deepening tragedy that is Syria, many carried by the Huffington Post, I have argued that a necessary element for peace in Syria is an initial partition or zones of influence from neighbouring states. This has not been a fashionable view in diplomatic circles in most countries wedded to the concept of keeping Syria as a unified country. Turkey in particular was understandably very reluctant to move militarily across the border into Syria. When Russia extended an airfield close to Latakia not far from the naval port they had had in Syria since 1971 and put sophisticated airplanes in to protect the the Assad forces, everything changed. Turkey shot down a Russian plane and felt threatened by Kurdish forces pushing along their border with Syria. Turkish relations also became very strained within NATO, particularly with the US over strategies for dealing with ISIL and Germany over refugee policies and human rights. Turkey responded by defusing tensions with Russia. In this period the Russian militarily achieved their objective, reinforced by Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon and Iranian forces, in winning back for President Assad control of the key roads linking Damascus to the Mediterranean Sea. These forces, as a consequence, are back in control of this area and it has become a Russian zone of influence. It reaches now to include Hama and its combined forces are now abusing every humanitarian principle in a bid to take Aleppo by force and they are still using chlorine gas. Only Turkey is in a political and military position to intervene on the ground in Syria and they have demonstrated this by a limited cross border initiative this summer against ISIL. But Turkish tanks were also pre-empting a planned Kurdish advance. Turkey can now because of changed circumstances create a crucial balancing factor in Syria by taking urgent humanitarian action with their troops and air power in relieving the siege of Aleppo. Under the UN Charter, even if the Security Council is blocked by a TRENDING Donald Trump Fell For Hillary Clinton’s Trap At Monday’s Presidential Debate How Do Presidential Candidates Lie To Thee? Let HuffPost Count The Ways 0 : 10 / 0 : 10 0 Like Like
Transcript of Turkey should be helped to intervene over Aleppo ... · 9/27/2016 · Turkey should be helped to...
INFORM • INSPIRE • ENTERTAIN • EMPOWER
SIEMENSDISHWASHERSE60T390GB/01... DISCOVER MORE
E D I T I O N
US
NEWS POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT WELLNESS WHAT’S WORKING VOICES VIDEO ALL SECTIONS
CONTRIBUTOR
Turkey should be helped to intervene over Aleppo 09/27/2016 09:17 am ET
Lord David OwenFormer British foreignsecretary
This post is hosted on theHuffington Post’sContributor platform.Contributors control theirown work and post freelyto our site. If you need toflag this entry as abusive,send us an email.
In repeated interviews and articles on the deepening tragedy thatis Syria, many carried by the Huffington Post, I have argued that anecessary element for peace in Syria is an initial partition or zonesof influence from neighbouring states. This has not been afashionable view in diplomatic circles in most countries wedded tothe concept of keeping Syria as a unified country. Turkey inparticular was understandably very reluctant to move militarilyacross the border into Syria. When Russia extended an airfieldclose to Latakia not far from the naval port they had had in Syriasince 1971 and put sophisticated airplanes in to protect the theAssad forces, everything changed. Turkey shot down a Russianplane and felt threatened by Kurdish forces pushing along theirborder with Syria. Turkish relations also became very strainedwithin NATO, particularly with the US over strategies for dealingwith ISIL and Germany over refugee policies and human rights.Turkey responded by defusing tensions with Russia.
In this period the Russian militarily achieved their objective,reinforced by Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon and Iranian forces,in winning back for President Assad control of the key roadslinking Damascus to the Mediterranean Sea. These forces, as aconsequence, are back in control of this area and it has become aRussian zone of influence. It reaches now to include Hama and itscombined forces are now abusing every humanitarian principle ina bid to take Aleppo by force and they are still using chlorine gas.
Only Turkey is in a political and military position to intervene onthe ground in Syria and they have demonstrated this by a limitedcross border initiative this summer against ISIL. But Turkish tankswere also pre-empting a planned Kurdish advance. Turkey cannow because of changed circumstances create a crucialbalancing factor in Syria by taking urgent humanitarian action withtheir troops and air power in relieving the siege of Aleppo. Underthe UN Charter, even if the Security Council is blocked by a
T R E N D I N G
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How Do PresidentialCandidates Lie To Thee?Let HuffPost Count TheWays
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Russian veto, Turkey has a regional locus and a measure oflegitimacy having taken large numbers of Syrian refugees.
Potentially in NATO there is the necessary support for such anintervention by Turkey. But since the failed military coup againstPresident Erdogan in Turkey, a very damaging strain emerged inNATO’s relations with their fellow member, namely the role in thislatest coup of the Iman Fethullah Gulen. Gulen was born in 1941in eastern Turkey and now lives in Pennsylvania USA, having leftTurkey in 1999.
The Gulen Movement or Cemaat, which he inspires, is an Islamiccommunity in Turkey and overseas. It operates both openly andunderground in Turkey and while once it favoured Erdogan it isnow very opposed to him. Erdogan has alleged that Gulen wasresponsible for the coup and Turkey asked for his extradition fromthe US. Importantly the US is now ready to return Gulen for trial inTurkey.
On Friday 23 September Bekir Bozdag Turkey’s Justice Ministerannounced in Istanbul that Vice President Joe Biden hadaccepted that there is “concrete evidence” that Gulen was behindthe failed coup. Assuming there is substantive evidence in relationto Gulen the political path is therefore open for early and decisiveaction over Syria between Washington and Ankara.
Turkish military action should and could be mounted within hoursof a decision by President Erdogan to move a considerablenumber of Turkish tanks, artillery and ground to air missiles intoSyria within range of Assad forces around Aleppo. They wouldhave the power to implement a No Fly Zone crucially given what isalready happening in the air from the ground with protected landcorridors for humanitarian aid and the flow of people both waysinto Aleppo. This should be accompanied by a demand for thewithdrawal of Assad forces to a line between Hama and Aleppo.
NATO forces would guard Turkey as they conducted thishumanitarian operation. Air activity outside the NFZ wouldcontinue against ISIL in Syria and Iraq by Russia, NATO andAssad forces. A Kurdish area of influence in Syria in relation to ISILwould continue de facto. Areas of influence would apply, if theyare prepared to exercise them, by Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Jordanover the borders of Syria predominantly against ISIL. This wholeinitiative should be discussed at the highest military level in theNATO-Russian Council before going to the Security Council.
When the time is ripe UN supervised elections should take placein Syria and a single government be chosen for a unified butprobably federal country. To try to anticipate when this canhappen is at present impossible given the complexity of theconflict between anti-Assad Syrian fighters and the nature of ISIL.The humanitarian imperative is for the region to act and the worldto help.
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