Ankara is key to strategic rebalancing

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

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Ankara is key to strategic rebalancing
Trump's withdrawal decision may boost ties with Ankara

Trump's withdrawal decision may boost ties with Ankara

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

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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?

Reactions mixed to Trump's decision to pull US troops from Syria

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.

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Reactions mixed to Trump's decision to pull US troops from
If Trump means business his best option is to work

If Trump means business, his best option is to work with Turkey

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

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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.

Neither a populist discourse nor a violent uprising can help opposition win the upcoming elections, as Turkish democracy has recently proven how strong it is in the face of such crises

Turkey is determined to conduct a military operation east of the Euphrates River. Neither Washington's objections and expressions of concern nor Moscow's call for common sense and dialogue are getting through to the Turks.

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

Ankara has declared a counterterror offensive against the YPG, signaling that it is time for U.S. forces to step back from northern Syria in order to avoid a possible confrontation with the Turkish military

Washington's policy of supporting the PYD and YPG in Syria aims to push regional states into more clashes, which will only benefit Israeli interests at the end of the day

It is still unclear which superpower – Russia or the U.S. – has better ties with Turkey at the moment, as Ankara is open to working with anyone who respects its national security concerns

The future of the YPG is the top priority for Ankara since the beginning; therefore, unless the U.S. stops challenging Turkey on this matter, their bilateral relations can never get back on track

Yet, the pain that accompanied Britain's decision to leave the EU two years ago hasn't ended just yet. The nature of the agreement fueled a new public debate in Britain, where former Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of the mildest critics of the Brexit deal, called it "pointless."

What are the backstage strategic calculations of the U.S. rewards offer? What are the expected initial reactions of the relevant actors? What are the pragmatic implications of the rewards offer in terms of the interests of the relevant actors?

The Erdoğan-Bahçeli meeting on Thursday reconfirmed that the two political blocs, namely the People's Alliance of the AK Party and MHP and the opposition's Nation Alliance, formed for the June 24 presidential elections, will remain in place for the next local elections

Both the Turkish and American sides need to handle their disagreements in the Syrian crisis; otherwise, their traditional partnership may never return to normal