As millions have suffered persecution and so taken part of an unprecedented exodus from war-thorn Syria, Murat Yeşiltaş, the Director of Security Studies at the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA), shed a light on politics in the region during a France 24 program broadcast on June 18, 2015.
To some, the capture of Tel Abyad is an easy victory for the Kurdish militants against ISIL. Yeşiltaş said, this is not a surprise for Turkey either because of the U.S. or the Coalition airstrikes against ISIL. But Turkey, of course, has many concerns about the current situation in Northern Syria, he added.
To France24’s question of “Is it not better to have Syrian Kurds rather than jihadists?” regarding the capture of the Syrian city of Tel Abyad, Yeşiltaş answered:
“We cannot ask this very simple question to understand whether the PYD armed groups making an ethnic cleansing in the region or not. We cannot ask the question that why only Arabs or Turkmen have to migrate to Turkey rather than Kurds…” He stressed that Turkey is mainly concerned about the fragility of the ethnic balance in Northern Syria and does not want to see any possible armed conflict between Kurds and Arabs.
Yeşiltaş, expressed Turkey’s three main concerns regarding the situation in Northern Syria. “The issue is not only about the ethnic cleansing of minority groups in Tel Abyad, or displacement of Arabs and Turkmens,” said Yeşiltaş, “but is also about the lack of U.S. strategy.”
According to SETA’s Security Director, the U.S. have a very selective strategy in fighting against ISIL. Yeşiltaş criticizing U.S. strategy in Syria said that the U.S. should develop a very clear and comprehensive strategy and should not only assist the Kurdish political status in the region but also should provide assistance to the armed opposition groups. “This comprehensive strategy should be based on balance…” Yeşiltaş added.
