Turkish Aerial and Ground Aggression in Syria

by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org - Home - Stephen Lendman)

Following terror-bombing and cross-border shelling of Kurdish positions in northeast Syria begun Tuesday, Turkish troops invaded the country along a 300-mile-wide perimeter on Wednesday. 

Trump green-lighted the operation. Pompeo lied claiming otherwise while falsely saying Ankara has "legitimate security concerns."

Time and again, Trump says one things, then goes another way. On Wednesday, he said if Erdogan wipes out Kurdish fighters, "I will wipe out his economy…"

Turkey has no "terrorist threat to (the) south." Along with the US, NATO, Israel, and other regional rogue states, the Erdogan regime actively supports ISIS and likeminded terrorists infesting Syria.

Kurdish YPG fighters pose no cross-border threat except in self-defense if attacked by Turkish forces.

On Wednesday, Ankara's war ministry said the nation's combat troops entered Syria and "advance(d) east of the Euphrates River" in the northeast.

Turkish vice president Fuat Oktay falsely claimed "(o)ur army continues its fight against terrorists (sic), while its main priority is to protect civilians from harm (sic)."

Like the US, NATO, Israel, the Saudis and their imperial partners, Turkey doesn't give a damn about civilians in harm's way.

Following Erdogan Big Lie, Oktay repeated it, falsely saying "Turkey, acting within the framework of its rights arising from international law and the 'right of self-defense' set out in the UN Charter (sic), is determined to drain the swamp of terror that threatens our borders and poses a threat to the whole world (sic)," adding:

"It is our greatest expectation that the world public opinion will have the same determination in the fight against terrorist organizations."

Like the US-led West and Israel, Turkey actively supports ISIS, al-Nusra, and other jihadists in Syria.

Its cross-border aggression has nothing to do with combatting these elements, everything to do with Erdogan's aim to annex Syrian territory.

Bipartisan US senators prepared sanctions legislation on Turkey. 

Reportedly it prohibits sale of US weapons and related transactions, targets entities and individuals supporting its energy industry used by its military, along with denouncing its (legitimate) purchase of Russian S-400 air defense missiles.

It also freezes assets held by Erdogan and other Turkish officials in the US, if any. Trump threatened to "destroy" its economy if its aggression conflicts with US interests.

If imposed, sanctions are to remain in place "unless the (White House) certifies to Congress – every 90 days – that Turkey is not operating unilaterally (without US support east of the Euphrates and west of the Iraqi border) in Syria and has withdrawn its armed forces, including Turkish supported (terrorists), from areas it occupied during the operation beginning on October 09, 2019" — according to Senator Lindsey Graham's tweet.

Trump reportedly said he'll support sanctions on Turkey, even something "tougher."

He demeaned the Kurds, saying "they didn't help us in the second world war" — largely won by Soviet Russia against the scourge of Nazism, US forces playing a lesser role, neither he, anyone else in Washington, or their press agent media ever explain.

On Thursday, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said "control (of) sites and positions in the Syrian al-Jazira region (claimed by Turkey) are baseless."

On Wednesday, SANA reported that Damascus "affirmed its determination to confront the Turkish aggression by all legitimate means, adding that the hostile behavior of Erdogan's regime clearly show the Turkish expansionist greed in the Syrian territories," citing Syria's Foreign Ministry, adding:

Erdogan's aggression shows his regime "classif(ies) itself as one of the terrorist organizations and armed groups…"

On Thursday, UN Security Council members will meet in emergency session on Turkish aggression in Syria, numerous civilian casualties already reported, many thousands fleeing to inland areas.

Like many times before throughout the post-WW II era, the US betrayed Kurdish forces it vowed to support — further proof it can never be trusted.

A Final Comment

Weak-kneed world community outrage over Turkish aggression in Syria is hollow.

It's consistently absent against Washington's rape and destruction of one country after another for decades, including Syria.

VISIT MY NEW WEBSITE: stephenlendman.org (Home - Stephen Lendman). Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III."

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