Syria, Turkey, mounting tensions over Idlib

On Friday, a Syrian military helicopter was shot down over the Idlib region, which Syria sees as a rebel bastion in the northwest of the country, and where Turkish troops and Russian-backed Syrian forces have engaged in multiple clashes. Three days earlier, another Syrian military helicopter was downed over Idlib province, killing at least three crew members. This is the second incident in a week of high tensions with between Syria and Turkey. The attack on Friday came as Washington urged Ankara to look to its western allies in light of Moscow’s actions.

“At approximately 1:40pm (local time), one of our military helicopters was hit by a hostile missile in the western countryside of Aleppo,” Syrian state news agency SANA said. “This led the helicopter to crash, killing all crew on board.” It said the aircraft was downed near the town of Urum al-Kubra. The National Liberation Front, assumed to be Turkey-backed, claimed responsibility in a statement posted on the Telegram app. Turkey officially did not claim responsibility, while Turkish media blamed that attack on rebels.

Turkey and Russia back opposing sides in the conflict, and agreed in 2018 to set up a de-escalation zone in the region. A Syrian government offensive disrupted Ankara and Moscow’s fragile cooperation, after 13 Turkish soldiers were killed in the past two weeks. Since December, Syrian and Russian forces have conducted a deadly assault on the northwestern Idlib region and parts of neighbouring Aleppo and Latakia provinces, most recently claiming the lives of eight civilians on Friday.

Vice President Fuat Oktay said on Saturday that Turkey has fulfilled its responsibilities in the northwestern Syrian region of Idlib in line with the agreements it made with Russia and Iran. Oktay told broadcaster NTV that Turkey was determined to stop the Syrian government advances in Idlib, repeating a threat that Ankara would use military power to push back Syrian forces if they did not withdraw by the end of February. He said Turkey had conveyed its position on Idlib to Russia during the talks.

The assault has sparked the largest wave of displacement in the nine-year conflict, with 800,000 people fleeing since December, according to the United Nations. Among them, some 82,000 people are sleeping rough in sub-zero temperatures. The exodus of civilians has triggered alarm in Turkey, which fears an influx across its border.

European members of the UN Security Council called Friday for an immediate end to the Idlib offensive to save lives. “We demand that the parties, especially the Syrian regime and its allies, immediately end their military offensive, establish a genuine and lasting ceasefire,” said permanent member France and non-permanent members Belgium, Estonia and Germany. “There can be no sustainable military solution to the Syrian conflict,” they said in a joint statement.

A senior US State Department official said Friday that tensions between Turkey and Russia over Syria should prompt Ankara to move closer to the West, especially Washington. "Certainly we would like to see Turkey more directly and clearly aligned with NATO, the United States, the West, in recognition of the very destructive role that the Russians are playing regionally, including right now in Syria," the official said.

On Friday, Syrian pro-government forces pushed west of the key M5 motorway, which connects Syria's four largest cities and is economically vital. Syrian forces seized the last segment of the highway still out of their control earlier this week. SANA said Friday that the areas flanking it had been swept and the road fully secured.

SOURCE (RETUERS, AFP, AP, THE GUARDIAN)