Uneasy Damascus/Kurdish Alliance

In-depth Report:

Throughout most of Obama’s war, now Trump’s, against Syrian sovereign independence and territorial integrity, Kurdish YPG fighters and their politicians allied with US imperial aims for their own self-interest — including support for jihadists used as Pentagon/CIA proxy foot soldiers.

Kurdish betrayal complicates rapprochement with Damascus. Trust must be earned. Kurds have lots of proving to do.

For now, an uneasy alliance was formed against a common Turkish foe. Southfront said agreed on terms between both sides haven’t been revealed — each side with its “own version of events,” adding:

For Kurdish politicians and fighters, it’s for “the defense sphere only,” a political agreement to be discussed “in the coming days.”

Russia is acting as “guarantor” of terms agreed on, Moscow alone able “to prevent the further Turkish incursion into northeastern Syria.”

If things go as planned, Syrian forces will be deployed along areas bordering Turkey to “guarantee” Syrian Arab Republic territorial integrity — what Russia called for throughout years of war, along with preserving the country’s sovereignty.

“(A)reas captured by” Turkish and proxy fighters will remain active conflict theaters until “liberated,” said Southfront.

According to Damascus, oil-producing areas east of the Euphrates river must be returned to government control.

Assad may grant concessions to Kurds short of an autonomous state within the Syrian Arab Republic — maybe something along the lines of the US federal system.

Under the US 10th Amendment,

“powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

Something like the above might work for both sides. As for Turkish cross-border aggression, Erdogan wants to seize and control as much Syrian territory as possible, part of his revanchist agenda.

Syrian Arab Army forces aim to preserve and protect the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity against all illegal foreign occupiers.

Syrian troops entered and control strategic Manbij, its surrounding areas, Kobani, Raqqa, Tabqa, Ayn Isa, and areas near Tell Tamr, Kurdish YPG fighters operating alongside them.

Russian military police are deployed between their forces and Erdogan’s to prevent both sides from clashing — a key objective.

US troops still illegally occupy southern Syrian territory. Its special forces and CIA elements may be operating covertly anywhere in the country.

Pentagon-led terror-bombing remains a constant threat, along with continued arming and training of ISIS and other jihadists on its regional bases.

On Wednesday, Erdogan claimed Turkish forces control about 1,000 sq. km of northern Syrian territory.

On Thursday, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that Ras al-Ayn civilians in harm’s way of Turkish aggression were hospitalized with “severe burns” believed to be from (banned) “chemical substances,” adding:

“(S)ources (reported that) the Turkish regime used the internationally-banned (white) phosphorus in shelling residential neighborhoods in Ras al-Ayn city.”

US-dominated NATO and Israel use chemical, biological, radiological, and other banned terror weapons against adversaries time and again, accountability never forthcoming.

In response to Trump’s letter to Erdogan discussed in a same-day article, Turkish media reported that it was “rejected…and thrown away,” an unnamed Ankara source saying:

“The straightest answer to this letter is the Operation Peace Spring, which began on October 9,” adding:

“Trump understood such proposals were not valid. (He) has seen that he cannot make Erdogan do anything with the mediation offer.”

Erdogan and Trump will meet next month in Washington. On October 22, the Turkish president will meet with Vladimir Putin in Sochi, Syria the topic of discussion for both meetings.

On Thursday morning in Ankara, Trump’s national security advisor Robert O’Brien and special presidential envoy James Jeffrey met with Turkish foreign minister Cavusoglu — reportedly only for “45 minutes…no further details…given” on how talks went, according to Turkish media.

On Wednesday, Erdogan’s spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said

“(n)either sanction threats nor condemnations can deter us from our rightful cause (sic),” adding:

So-called “Operation Peace Spring will continue without slowing down until it reaches its aims.”

There’s nothing “rightful” about aggression, the highest of high crimes by one state against another.

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Award-winning author Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected]. He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG)

His new book as editor and contributor is titled “Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III.”

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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Articles by: Stephen Lendman

About the author:

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected]. His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III." http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network. It airs three times weekly: live on Sundays at 1PM Central time plus two prerecorded archived programs.

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