A new year has begun and there is no shortage of political debate in Turkey. The U.S. withdrawal from Syria and the March 31 municipal elections are among the most critical issues on the agenda. Let's focus on Syria today.

The U.S. withdrawal decision will accelerate the process of political settlement in Syria, signaling that a transformation period is at hand for the country

In 2005, during a visit to troops in Iraq, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld reportedly said, "We don't have an exit strategy, we have a victory strategy." The true meaning of this statement and its potential repercussions for the U.S. strategy in Iraq is a matter of debate among scholars.

It's no surprise that we are seeing fake news about Manbij circulating in the media as the Syrian city is a significant location that will eventually shape the future of the whole country

U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to bring home thousands of American troops triggered a new rebalancing in Syria and the Middle East.

Until a few weeks ago, analysts and observers of Turkish-American relations projected that the most significant issues in bilateral relations for the year 2019 would be the S-400 and the divergence of interests and strategies in Syria..

On Dec. 19, U.S. officials stated that the Pentagon had an order to move troops out of Syria as quickly as possible. Later on, they started to inform their partners in northeastern Syria about their plans regarding the immediate pullback of American forces from the region, where they have been trying to wrap up the campaign against Daesh.

Most of the critics who strongly oppose the idea of the U.S.' withdrawal from Syria have not come up with a convincing explanation in regard to their opposition nor have they provided an alternative proposal

The U.S.' withdrawal from Syria is a significant step that will influence the future of the Syrian crisis.

Turkey and the Trump administration must actively coordinate their efforts to plan the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria. Trump's pledge to leave Syria slowly and in coordination with Turkey was a good sign. Still, both sides must be vigilant to ensure that U.S. Central Command won't derail the process

U.S. President Donald Trump came under fire for his decision to pull out of Syria. Critics argue that Washington's withdrawal marks a rare and clear victory for Russia, and claim that the United States looked like an unreliable ally by "betraying" the People's Protection Units (YPG), the PKK terrorist organization's Syrian affiliate.

How will the U.S. withdrawal reshape the inter- and intra-group dynamics in Syria? How will the withdrawal influence Turkey’s planned operation east of the Euphrates? How will this decision affect U.S.-Turkey relations?

Trump tweeted victory over Daesh and said he was pulling US troops from Syria. Turkey and Russia have welcomed the decision. France and the UK say they're staying engaged. The US withdrawal could change the balance of forces in the Syrian war.

Cooperating with Turkey is the most rational way for President Trump to successfully implement his decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria

Turkey's national security concerns, which have been fueled by the unpredictable and insecure moves by the United States in northern Syria, have pushed Ankara to take the lead in completely eradicating terror threats on its borders with a military offensive, experts have said.

The US has announced that its operation against Daesh is over and that it will withdraw from Syria, after Turkey revealed its plans for an operation in the country.

Security concerns are the sole motivation for the Turkish military, which is about to launch a counterterror operation in northern Syria