Introduction
Syria has been embroiled in a violent uprising since 2011 when the Syrian opposition began widespread demonstrations against president Bashar al-Assad and his government. The Syrian crisis was fueled by the winds of revolution that were blowing through the Arab world. This Arab uprising led to the toppling of regimes in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya due to popular uprisings by the citizens of these countries.
The Arab Spring Revolutions have been the most significant political event in the region and they have had huge ramifications as regimes have been toppled and governments have been obligated to engage in reforms. In the case of Syria, President Assad has refused to leave power in spite of the widespread opposition against him and international pressure for him to do so.
Instead of relenting to the popular uprising against him, Assad engaged in brutal repression of the demonstrators in his country. This violent repression led to the formation of armed rebel groups that have been fighting to topple the Assad regime for almost three years without any real success.
The events in Syria have attracted the attention of the international community and the country’s regional neighbors. Turkey, which is a regional power, has been heavily involved in Syrian affairs since the crisis has some impact on Turkey due to its common border with Syria and its strategic interests in the region (Idrees 88).
Turkey has therefore emerged as the country that has played the most monumental role in trying to resolve the Syrian crisis. This paper will set out to provide an in-depth description of the efforts that Turkey has engaged in to assist mitigate the Syrian crisis and speed the process of stabilizing the nation.
The paper will begin by articulating the reasons behind Turkey’s interest in Syria and then proceed to outline the role that Ankara has played in the Syrian issue.
Turkey’s Interest in the Syrian Events
Even as the Syrian Crisis gets to its third year, Turkey continues to demonstrate a great commitment to ensuring that the crisis is effectively resolved in the shortest time possible. From the onset of the Syrian crisis, Turkey demonstrated an interest in the actions carried out by the Assad regime and by the opposition. Turkey shares a 911km border with Syria making instability in Syria an issue of concern for Turkey.
Turkey has a vested interest in the outcome of the Syrian Crisis. In recognition of the critical ramifications that the events in Syria would have on Turkey, the Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan described the situation in Syria in 2011 as “an internal Turkish issue” (88).
Turkey has made a huge regional and domestic capital in overthrowing the Assad regime and the current policy supports the armed rebels and the Syrian opposition. Ankara has been the most prominent foreign actor in the Syrian affairs since the revolution against the Assad regime broke out in 2011 (Idrees 88).
The Turkish Foreign Minister asserts that Turkey is obliged to act on the Syrian issue not only because it needs to defend its own national strategies but also because it is a regional power in the region (47). Turkey’s role in Syria will contribute to its growing influence in the region.
Analysts predict that if the Syrian opposition succeeds, it will set up a government modeled after Turkey’s ruling AKP government and look up to Ankara as the mentor. Phillips suggests that by backing the Syrian opposition and promoting the SNC, Turkey is establishing a good relationship with the future successors of Assad; therefore boosting its own influence in the country (138).
Turkey’s involvement has also been prompted by concerns that the Syrian crisis might contribute to a reemergence of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) problem in Turkey. The PKK is a Kurdish nationalist movement that has been fighting for secession from Turkey. Egin declares that the anti-Assad policy adopted by Ankara has “breathed new life into the Turkish Kurds’ long struggle for independence” (66).
Because of Turkey’s denouncing of the Assad regime, the Syrian government has retaliated by covertly funding the PKK groups operating along the Turkish border.
Egin reports that the Assad regime has reversed its longstanding anti-Kurd policies and provided the Kurd fighters with a degree of logistical support and refuge from Turkish forces (66). This has reinvigorated the PKK and enabled it to resume an armed struggle against Turkey.
Turkey’s Humanitarian Efforts
One of the areas where Turkey has played a major role is with regard to the Syrian refugees. Since the outbreak of the Syrian conflict, the number of Syrians looking for refuge from their country’s violence has been rising. Since Turkey shares an expansive border with Syria, many Syrians have sought to cross into Turkey to escape the violence in their country (Laqueur 77).
Sly reports that while refugees have moved into the other countries surrounding Syria, Turkey has received the greatest percentage of refugees (1). Turkey is currently home to over 400,000 Syrian refugees who continue to put a strain on the resources of the Turkish government as their daily needs are met.
In addition to the refugees already living in Turkey, the country is admitting between 500 and 1,500 Syrians each day at certain border crossings. The flow of refugees into Turkey has at times been so high that the Turkish government has been forced to close key border crossings in order to regulate the flow of Syrians.
However, Turkey has demonstrated a great desire to assist the Syrians fleeing from the violence in their country.
Turkey has been deeply involved in humanitarian efforts aimed at assisting the vast number of Syrian refugees within its borders. Turkey has established numerous camps in its territory to accommodate Syrian Refugees. Jodi reports that the camps established by Turkey for the Syrian refugees are some of the best refugee camps in the world (1).
Some of the camps established for refugees include pre-fabricated houses that contain two rooms and a bathroom making the lives of the refugees in Turkey very decent. Most of the money used to sustain the refugees has been from Turkey’s own financial reserves. The country has also demonstrated great generosity by spending close to $1billion dollars on Syrian refugees in order to alleviate their conditions while in Turkey.
In spite of limited international support for the refugees fleeing Syria, Turkey has continued to offer great support to Syrian refugees. Jodi observes that the international aid to alleviate the humanitarian crisis occurring at the Turkey-Syria border has been minimal with most Western countries providing limited aid (1).
Turkey has filled this void by providing substantial support to meet the needs of the Syrians. However, analysts contend that Turkey’s ability to deal with the humanitarian crisis might be hampered if the Syrian crisis extends beyond 2013 and the influx of refugees across the Turkey-Syria border increases.
International diplomatic efforts
Turkey has engaged in a lot of international diplomacy to try resolving the Syrian crisis. Turkey has exploited its good relationship with Western nations to carry out diplomatic efforts concerning the Syrian crisis. Turkey is a part of the “Friends of Syria” group, which is made up of countries that are concerned about the Syrian crisis and are engaged in diplomatic action to resolve the crisis.
Turkey hosted the major meeting by this group held on April 2012 and in this meeting, the Turkish PM called on the international community to take action against Assad’s regime. In line with its stance against the Syrian government, Turkey reiterated its opinion that Syrian rebels should be given the means with which to defend themselves from Assad’s onslaught.
Turkey has been involved in international efforts aimed at keeping Syrians safe in their own country. Turkey has engaged in advocacy for more stringent actions to be taken against Assad by the international community. The Turkish government is the strongest supporter of a no fly zone that, once enacted, would ensure that Syrians are safe in the Northern parts of the country.
Sly observes that most Syrian refugees in Turkey have been forced out of their country by the frequent aerial bombardments carried out by the Assad regime (1). Imposition of a no fly zone would stop the airstrikes and make the area safe for Syrians to live in.
The no-fly zone has also been aimed at protecting turkey from Syrian attacks. Following the shooting down of a Turkish Air Force jet by the Syrian army in June 2012, Turkey called on its NATO allies to enforce a no-fly zone in Syria. While a no fly zone is yet to be implemented in the crisis, the Turkish administration continues to advocate for it at the UN and through NATO.
Turkey has urged the international community to engage in limited military intervention against the Assad regime or increase its support to the Syrian rebels. In the recent past, the Turkish Foreign Minister has called on the international community to take action against the Assad regime.
Following a car bombing in May 12 in a Turkish border town that led to the death of 46 people, the Turkish government has called for action against Syria to ensure that the violence there does not spread into the neighboring countries (Burch 1).
However, the international community has shown great reluctance in responding to the Syrian crisis. Major powers such as the US are apprehensive and have not taken any solid step in the issue (Williams and Colleen 50).
Diplomatic Efforts with Syrian Actors
In addition to the international efforts, Turkey has used its regional influence to attempt resolving the Syrian crisis domestically. At the onset of the conflict in Syria, Turkey attempted to use its close ties with the Assad regime to control the activities taking place in Syria. The Turkish government tried to persuade Assad to stop his brutality against the opposition forces.
Instead of engaging in a ‘zero problems’ strategy in the Syrian case, Turkey has adopted a ‘values-based’ foreign policy that supports democratic forces (Phillips 138). Turkey has publicly criticized the Assad regime and lobbied for greater participation by the Sunni majority in the Syrian government (Kouskouvelis 48).
Damla reveals that in August 2011, the Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoğlu held a lengthy meeting with Assad in which he tried to get Assad to engage in dialogue with the rebels (43).
The Turkish government representative officially impressed on Assad that it was necessary for his government to share power with the majority Sunni community and make major reforms in the country. However, these talks did not yield positive results since Assad was unwilling to resolve the problems facing his regime through dialogue and reforms.
The good relationship between Turkey and the Syrian opposition has enabled Turkey to play an influential role in the crisis. Turkey has moderated over talks between the US and the moderate opposition forces in Syria to try and come up with a strong and unified opposition coalition that can challenge Assad.
These efforts are significant since at the moment, the Syrian opposition is made up of many disparate groupings, some of which are affiliated with radical Islamic terror outfits such as Al-Qaeda. Western powers are unwilling to back a Syrian opposition that has affiliations with terrorist organizations.
Turkey has therefore played a key role in initiating dialogue between the opposition and the US and some EU countries to reach a consensus on the composition of the Syrian opposition.
Turkey and the Syrian Opposition
In spite of a decade-long good relationship between the Turkish administration and the Assad regime, Turkey denounced the Syrian government following the rise of the resistance against the Assad government in March 2011. Before the Crisis, Turkey had engaged in a “zero problems” foreign policy with Syria.
This policy was aimed at eliminating all the historical issues that Turkey faced with Syria and promoting trade in the region. The Syrian crisis caused Turkey to abandon this policy of disengagement and play a more pronounced role in Syrian affairs.
Syrian rebels have received significant support from the Turkish government. Arango reveals that in addition to providing a permanent base for the umbrella resistance group, the Syrian National Council, the Turkish government has opened up some areas on its side of the border with Syria to the rebels. This opposition fighters are allowed to plan, coordinate, and launch their attacks against the Assad regime from Turkish soil (1).
Turkey has also served as a safe harbor for military defectors from the Syrian Army. As the civil conflict in Syria carries on, hundreds of military officials have defected from Assad’s brutal regime. Turkey has offered refuge to these defectors with the Turkish Army protecting the camps where these military officials are staying (Damla 43).
In the latest development in the Syrian crisis, the US and Syria’s main ally Russia have announced their intention to engage in cooperative efforts to end the conflict through diplomacy. Such action would require the participation of the Assad regime and the Syrian opposition.
Leaders from Syria’s opposition coalition are going to meet under the supervision of Turkey in Istanbul to deliberate on whether they will be involved in this international conference that might probably lead to an end in the Syrian conflict. The involvement of Turkey in this matter is of great importance since as a Muslim country, Turkey has the required legitimacy that the West lacks when dealing with Syria.
Military Force
The Turkish government has publicly stated that it is not willing to engage in an all out military confrontation with Syria to help resolve the crisis. Because of this policy, Turkey has by the large avoided direct military involvement in the Syrian Conflict (Krajeski 1).
While it would be in Turkey’s best interest for the conflict to end soon, an outright military intervention by the Turkish military in Syria would not only be expensive but very unpopular. The Turkish population is not in support of military intervention by its country’s military. For this reason, Turkey has avoided engaging in unprovoked military intervention and its actions have often been in response to Syrian strikes in its territory.
In spite of the desire to avoid military action with Syria, Turkey has been forced to take some military action in retaliation to Syrian attacks on Turkish soil. The first publicly acknowledged attack by the Turkish army took place in October 2012 following a Syrian mortar strike that hit southeastern Turkey, killing 5 Turks.
This attack prompted retaliation by the Turkish army, which launched counter-battery fire into Syrian territory (Krajeski 1). In the events where Turkey has been forced to take military action to protect its borders, the situation has been quickly de-escalated by both sides.
The focus on de-escalation can be seen from the fact that even when Syrian missiles have landed in Turkey, the Turkish forces have limited their retaliation measures to counterattacking the units perceived to have opened fire across the border. The reason for this is that both Turkey and Syria are keen to avoid an armed retaliation since such action would have major negative repercussions for both sides.
While it is unlikely that Turkey will choose to invade Syria, the government has the power and support of the politicians on this issue.
Following fears that Syria was compromising the Turkish territory, the Turkish Parliament held a debate on the acceptability of a direct military response to Syria. On October 2012, the Parliament passed a resolution that authorized the government to send troops across the border if necessary (Arango 1).
Turkey has taken steps to protect itself from threats from the Syrian Army. As a member of the major military alliance NATO, Turkey has requested for military assistance from the organization.
In response to this, NATO supplied Turkey with the Patriot Missile Air Defense System in January this year to shield Ankara from its vulnerability to Syrian air attacks (Egin 65). NATO has also provided Turkey with four hundred military personnel to help fortify the Turkey-Syria border and deter any attacks from Syria.
Future Role
Turkey’s involvement in Syrian affairs is in part due to the self-interest of the country. An unstable Syria poses a threat to Turkey since the violence might spill over into the country. Damla asserts that a prolonged Syrian civil war will result in regional instability with an influx of Syrian refugees into Turkey and the possibility of a revival of the PKK threat from across the Syrian border (49).
Ankara’s support for the opposition forces is in anticipation of the toppling of the Assad regime. Damla suggests that Turkey wants to establish a strong relationship with a possible new Syrian government and protect future investments in the country under a post-Assad administration (47).
Turkey’s role can be expected to extend into the next few years regardless of the outcome of the Syrian situation. Analysts indicated that Turkey will continue to play a critical role in Syrian affairs for the next many years due to its position as a regional leader (Idrees 88).
Even if the Assad regime is toppled, the Syrian opposition does not show the unity needed to pull the country from the brink and establish the pre-crisis normalcy that Syria enjoyed. Turkey will therefore have to play a critical role in stabilizing the country and ensuring that Syria gets back on its feet.
Conclusion
This paper set out to provide an in-depth description of the role that Turkey has played in Syria since the development of the Syrian crisis in 2011. It began by highlighting the reasons why Turkey is playing a pronounced role in Syria. The paper then revealed that Turkey has played a prominent role in dealing with the humanitarian crisis produced by the Syrian conflict.
Turkey has also engaged in domestic diplomatic efforts to try end the conflict by talking with the Assad regime and the Syrian opposition. Turkey has also used its international influence to try to get the international community to act on the Syrian issue. In some instances, Turkey has had to engage in military action in retaliation to Syrian strikes on Turkish territory.
However, the general objective has been to avoid an all out military confrontation between the two countries. From this paper, it is clear that Turkey is a key player in Syrian affairs. The country’s position as a Muslim nation and a regional power has given it significant influence when dealing with the Syrian issue. Turkey’s role has been and will continue to be integral to the eventual resolution of the conflict.
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