Turkey’s PM sends reconciliatory messages to Russia, Israel, Syria, Egypt

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Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım has sent reconciliatory messages to four countries with whom Turkey has been experiencing problems, declaring that there can be no lasting enmity among countries in the Black Sea and Mediterranean.

“Israel, Syria, Russia, Egypt… There can’t be any permanent enmities between these countries encircling Black Sea and the Mediterranean. An incident happened with Russia. We of course won’t allow the violation of our right to sovereignty. However, it’s not right to stick to a single incident,” Yıldırım said, referring to a severe downturn in relations between Turkey and Russia after Ankara downed a Russian jet along its border on Nov. 24, 2015 over alleged airspace violations.

“We need to look at the bigger picture. There is no animosity between our peoples. It’s possible to return to the old days and even take it further,” he added.

Noting that mutual steps were being taken with Russia, Yıldırım added that diplomatic channels were open.
“Mr. President [Recep Tayyip Erdoğan] has showed his will. Russia has showed will, too. It will be settled after this point,” Yıldırım also said.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkeys-pm-sends-reconciliatory-messages-to-russia-israel-syria-egypt.aspx?pageID=238&nID=100597&NewsCatID=510

[KoKo]

1. hmm...

and this is interesting...

Yıldırım also commented on relations with Israel, saying the two countries were in contact.

“We are coming to a point with Israel. They are also showing will. There are contacts. It’s not concluded yet. I don’t think it will take long. The determinative thing here is eliminating the isolation of Gaza for humanitarian purposes,” he said.

Turkey was once Israel’s closest regional ally, but ties collapsed in 2010 over the killing by Israeli marines of 10 Turkish pro-Palestinian activists who tried to breach the Gaza blockade.

In response, Turkey demanded an apology for the killings, compensation for the Mavi Marmara victims and the lifting of the blockade on Gaza in exchange for restoring relations. Israel provided the apology, but the two sides have yet to reach a deal on the remaining two issues.

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2. Strange ideas are in the air.

Assad is winning, that's the problem, and ISIS/al Qaeda are losing, collapsing, in Syria & Iraq. Both Russia & the USA are contributing to that, but it is really Assad & the Kurds that are beating them with (essential) Russian & US help.

Certain parts of the US foreign policy establishment hate that, they hate being wrong, they hate losing, and they hate Russia, Assad, Hezbollah, Iran, etc. all the parties that are winning. They still think they can convince Putin to dump Assad, Assad is smack in the middle of what they want to do, and he hates their guts. The jingo nuts in Iran want a big war too. But it is decidedly not in Putin's interest to do that.

Putin is holding them back, Assad & Iran, they want to take it all back, and they won't like there being a Kurdish state there, either, on the S. border of Turkey, but they are out of luck, and they owe Putin a bundle already. But Assad is going nowhere, and what happens to the Sunni is still up in the air, but if they don't get with the program, a lot more of them will be killed.

And Erdogan doesn't get into the EU, and getting into the EU is not so attractive these days, and Erdogan has a nascent civil war in his east, and he wants to get that all tamped down now and try to save his own butt.

That's what Erdogan sees.

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3. Federal plan for northern Syria advances with U.S.-backed forces

As an alliance of U.S.-backed militias advance against Islamic State in northern Syria, their political allies are making progress of their own toward a new federal system of government which they hope will take root in newly captured areas.

The autonomous federation being planned by Syrian Kurdish parties and their allies is taking shape fast: a constitution should be finalised in three months, and possibly sooner, to be followed quickly by elections, a Kurdish official said.

While Kurdish groups insist this is no separatist bid, it is set to redraw the map as U.N. diplomacy fails to make any progress toward ending the war that has splintered Syria into a patchwork of separately-run areas.

In so doing, it is likely to deepen the concerns of NATO member Turkey about growing Kurdish influence in northern Syria, a region whose once unfamiliar Kurdish name - Rojava - has now entered the Middle East's political lexicon.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-federalism-idUSKCN0Z21FN

[KoKo]

4. But, then the vigorous push back...

This from "Voice of America"....oh yeah...

http://www.voanews.com/content/russia-bombs-us-backed-rebels-in-syria/3380332.html

Also, just a personal observation from MSM:

There seemed to be a big push this week in MSM against Russia/Putin and a curious raving rant from Joe Scarborough (who was against Iraq Invasion) on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" stating that: "Assad Must Go," "250,000 Coalition Troops" need to go in to stabilize situation, create a "Safe Zone" so the refugees can begin to return and then start "Killing Isis" and a"No Fly Zone" instituted. He also blamed Obama for the Refugee Crisis for not keeping to his "Red Line" on Assad removal. It was quite an outburst and seemed like it had been written for him.

Now I certainly don't think much of "Morning Joe," and am not a regular viewer, but they do seem to have an agenda they like to set each day and regularly have NeoCon's from the Think Tanks on the show. I wondered "Why Now" would there be a big push from the "NeoCons" to to find 250,000 troops to go into Syria?


ON EDIT:

Now I understand Why the Rant on MSNBC. I just saw your post over in "Good Reads." I've been out of town and out of touch and saw the MSNBC piece the day I left. I didn't realize there was State Dept. push back causing this. So just ignore the above. And thanks for the post below.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1016161022

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5. No surprise, took them two months to put it together.

Since "The Obama Doctrine" came out.

They will never give up.

But as you point out the argument gets more incoherent all the time because of its internal contradictions.

That has been the situation from the beginning, and it starts with the duplicity about motivations, why they want to get rid of Assad is not why they say they want to get rid of Assad. And the same with Putin, sure they are assholes, but the reason we don't like them is they are in the way. So we alternate between saying anything to damage them and cut them down and explaining why they mysteriously remain in the way. Same with Trump for that matter.

Of course this sort of PR assault does not work unless you control the narrative, and nobody controls the narrative any more, people like Trump control the narrative, and even then it's weak tactic, after a while people stop paying attention and move on.

But the question what happens to the Obama Doctrine going forward, that seems very much up for grabs. I am wondering if Obama will do anything about that, make it more difficult to undo, but can't say I have any idea what he thinks about that.

However the fact they chose to do it now rather than wait for a Clinton administration is interesting, assuming they thought about it, I think that is because the facts of the ground are working towards defeat of ISIS/Al Nusra/Sunni opposition on the battlefield, and a negotiated partition in both Syria and Iraq, and that will not be undone, once it is done, without lots more war, and February will be too late.

But the situation on the ground is really incoherent too, noisy, so ...

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6. Russia's defense minister visits Syria, meets Assad

MOSCOW (AP) -- Russia's defense minister has traveled to Syria to meet with its leader and visit the Russian air base.

The Defense Ministry said Saturday that Sergei Shoigu met with Syrian President Bashar Assad to discuss military ties and cooperation in fighting "terrorist groups."

Russia has conducted an air campaign in Syria since last September, helping Assad's forces win back some ground.

Shoigu also visited the Hemeimeem air base in the province of Lattakia, where he talked with pilots and inspected the S-400 air defense missile systems protecting the base.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_RUSSIA_SYRIA?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2016-06-18-12-32-29

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7. Manbij operation having real success due to cooperation with Turkey: Blinken

The U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that the Manbij operation, which is being carried out in Syria with the support of the international coalition against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) jihadist group, was having real success due to cooperation with Turkey.

"In fact, we are working together in Manbij and this is a very important operation. There is a piece of the border between Turkey and Syria that has been under the control of Daesh [ISIL]. And that Daesh has used it to get foreign fighters coming into Syria, to replenish its supply of fighters, but also to send fighters, terrorists out of Syria once they’ve been trained to attack in Turkey, to attack in Europe, to attack in the United States. Together, we came up with an operation to try to close that border, both from the West, moving west to east, and also from the East and the South moving up north and west. That operation is having real success and it’s a result of coordination, cooperation between the United States and Turkey," Blinken said in an interview with the private broadcaster CNN Türk during his a day-long visit to the Turkish capital Ankara on June 17.

However, on the U.S. cooperation with the People’s Defense Units (YPG), the Democratic Union Party's (PYD) militia forces regarded as the off-shoots of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) by Turkey, Blinken said the U.S. was working with a number of groups that are part of a shared interest in defeating ISIL while also sharing Turkey's concerns about the PKK.

"We have a strong shared interest, as I said, in defeating Daesh, and in Syria we’re working with a variety of groups that share that interest. And we are trying to be as effective as we can be in eliminating the threat posed by Daesh. We’re also extremely sensitive to Turkey’s concerns about the PKK, and indeed, we are supporting Turkey’s efforts and, in particular, we have repeatedly called on the PKK to cease its acts of terrorism, to lay down its arms, to return to the negotiating table that, unfortunately, it made the decision to leave. So, we’ve been acting in solidarity with Turkey when it comes to the PKK," Blinken said.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/manbij-operation-having-real-success-due-to-cooperation-with-turkey-blinken.aspx?pageID=238&nID=100643&NewsCatID=352

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8. IRGC commander leaves Ieaves Iraq for Syria amid escalating conflicts

TEHRAN, June 20 (Xinhua) -- The commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has left Iraq for Syria as the conflicts in Syria heat up, a local news agency reported on Monday.

"Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani rushed to Syria to oversee Resistance operations as the fight with terrorists takes a violent turn in recent days," semi-official Mehr news agency reported.

Soleimani departed for Syria to join his fellow warriors in the suburbs of Aleppo on Sunday, the report said.

During the recent liberation operation of the Islamic State (IS)-held city of Fallujah in Iraq, Soleimani was providing military advice to the Iraqi armed forces, the report added.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2016-06/20/c_135451831.htm

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9. Hezbollah forms new Deir Ezzor militia: activists

BEIRUT – Hezbollah reportedly formed a new militia force based in the eastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor, according to an activist group.

The local Deir Ezzor Is Being Slaughtered Silently organization reported on June 18 that the Lebanese militant organization had established a new military faction called the Zayn al-Abidin Brigade, named after the fourth Shiite Imam, who survived the Battle of Karbala in 680.

In a subsequent interview, the head of the activist group explained that Hezbollah’s new militia force is based in the city’s Al-Jura neighborhood and is comprised of approximately 150 fighters.

“Hezbollah members began appearing in the city four months ago,” Ahmad Ramadan told Zaman al-Wasl, adding that regime helicopters have been transporting fighters of the newly-formed Zayn al-Abidin Brigade to Deir Ezzor in the past week.

https://now.mmedia.me/lb/en/NewsReports/567115-hezbollah-forms-new-deir-ezzor-militia-activists

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10. The Algerian Connection: Will Turkey Change Its Syria Policy?

On April 8, 2016, the Francophone Algiers daily El Watan quoted an Algerian diplomatic source as saying that for the preceding several weeks his country had been running a secret mediation mission between the governments in Ankara and Damascus, who “want to have an exchange regarding the Kurdish question and the desire of the Syrian Kurds to create an independent state.” According to El Watan, Algeria’s involvement began as an attempt to calm tensions between Turkey and Russia following the downing of a Russian Su-24 jet by the Turkish Air Force in November 2015, but a second Syrian–Turkish channel later opened up via the Algerian embassies in Ankara and Damascus.

Though El Watan is a respected newspaper in Algeria and has good sources in the government, these claims are impossible to confirm. However there has been an intense exchange of Syrian and Algerian delegations this spring. For the first time since the Syrian conflict started in 2011, the country’s foreign minister, Walid al-Mouallem, traveled to Algiers on March 28–29. Intriguingly, this coincided with a visit by French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault. Algeria responded by sending their minister of Maghreb, African Union, and Arab League affairs, Abdelkader Messahel to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus on April 24–25.

Syria and Turkey have been at daggers’ drawn since late summer 2011 when Turkey ended its previous support for Assad's government and joined the coalition of states seeking to overthrow him. Since then, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been one of the most hawkish proponents of military pressure on Assad and his government has worked with a broad array of Sunni rebel factions, including hardline Islamists, to that end. But with the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces—a Syrian group linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, against which Turkey is waging a harsh counterinsurgency campaign—now rolling into the northern countryside of Aleppo, Erdogan’s priorities may be shifting. And that may in turn be part of a larger trend in Turkish foreign policy.

http://carnegieendowment.org/syriaincrisis/?fa=63847