Iranian International Affairs Analyst:

The West encouraging Turkey to enter Syria

Rasa – Hasan Hanizadeh said, “According to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, any NATO must consider an armed attack against one member state, in Europe or North America, to be an armed attack against them all.”

News ID: 436591

Date: 26 February 2018 - 15:51

RNA – In an interview with Rasa News Agency, Hasan Hanizadeh, an Iranian international affairs analyst and political assistant at the al-Ahwaz World Network, referred to the operation in the northwestern Syrian region of Afrin, said, “The Turkish army aims to confront the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Afrin and Idlib by organizing a series ground operations and is occupying the strategic region of Idlib in order to provide security for Turkey.”

He argued that after the defeat of Daesh in Abu Kamal and Dayr al-Zawr, the United States trained 30,000 people in northwest Syria in order to create a new crisis in the region, saying, “By sending 2,000 marines to Syria, the United States tried to create an autonomous region between Aleppo and Idlib for Syrian Kurds, which triggered the sensitivities of the Turkish government and led to a disagreement between the two NATO member states.”

He explained that the recent meeting between the chiefs of staff of the Turkish and American armies in Brussels had increased the tensions and differences between the two countries and noted, “Turkey had strongly warned the United States not to strengthen the Kurds and with the escalation of disputes, we witnessed the dispatch of the Turkish army to eastern Syria to secure the borders, while with such an act, the United States actually laid a trap for Turkey and the Turkish army.”

Referring to the formation of a guerrilla war between the Syrian Kurds and the Turkish army last month, Hanizadeh said, “With the continuation of war, the Turkish army would suffer serious damage and a quick withdrawal from Syria would be to its advantage.”

In another part of his speech, the international affairs analyst stated that Western silence on the operation in Afrin is a result of Turkey’s membership in NATO and noted that Turkey enjoys military and political immunity and that any aggression will be encountered by the silence of NATO members because, according to Article 5 of NATO’s internal law, an “armed attack against one member state, in Europe or North America, [is considered] to be an armed attack against them all.”

He continued, “The Turkish government sent its troops to Syria on the basis that the Syrian Kurds pose a serious threat to their security and in this regard,  we are witnessing the silence of the West, which in fact this perspective is a hypocritical relative to the events in the region and the world.”

“The Western countries seem to encourage Turkey to enter Syria,” Hanizadeh added.

In regards to the operation in eastern Ghoutah, the political assistant at the al-Ahwaz World Network said, “The al-Nusrah Front, Jaysh al-Rahman and Faylaq al-Islam have gathered in eastern Ghoutah and the Americans are attempting to occupy Damascus in the future through organizing these groups. Hence, given the advancement of the Syrian army in eastern and western Ghoutah, the Americans proposed a one-month cease-fire.”

He pointed out that the aim of proposing a ceasefire for the al-Nusrah Front, Jaysh al-Rahman and Faylaq al-Islam is in preparation for another attack on Damascus. Russia has opposed such a proposal and the United Nations Security Council meeting was postponed twice.

Hanizadeh said the Russians are well aware of the intention by the Americans to reorganize the terrorist groups with the aim of attacking and capturing Damascus.

Turkey launched the so-called “Operation Olive Branch” in Afrin on January 20 in a bid to eliminate the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which Ankara views as a terror organization and the Syrian branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

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