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Türkiye Will Not Withdraw Forces from Syria

A fighter from Turkish-backed factions at a military site near the city of Aleppo last August. (AFP)
A fighter from Turkish-backed factions at a military site near the city of Aleppo last August. (AFP)
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Türkiye Will Not Withdraw Forces from Syria

A fighter from Turkish-backed factions at a military site near the city of Aleppo last August. (AFP)
A fighter from Turkish-backed factions at a military site near the city of Aleppo last August. (AFP)

There is no plan for the withdrawal of Turkish forces from Syria’s Idlib governorate and Aleppo countryside, a Turkish military source told a meeting of opposition factions in northwestern Syria.

According to the source, Turkish forces present in those areas are “purely combative” and are deployed in compliance with an agreement concluded in early 2020 between Türkiye and Russia within the framework of the Astana Agreement.

“A special meeting was held in northwestern Syria in recent days. It included several opposition soldiers and a Turkish military official,” a Syrian opposition leader told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The meeting, said the source, tackled recent developments in Syria in addition to plans for warmer ties and normalization between Ankara and Damascus.

In a speech during the meeting, the Turkish official stressed that Türkiye has no plan or intention to withdraw from Syrian territory, and that this matter is strongly rejected “in the near term.”

The official affirmed that Turkish forces will not be pulled out of the country despite the withdrawal of forces being one of the key conditions of the Syrian regime for agreeing to rapprochement with Ankara.

“Turkish forces in the region are there to confront any advancement of regime forces towards Idlib and the opposition-controlled areas in northwestern Syria,” the official told the meeting.

Moreover, he stressed that opposition factions have every right to confront any advancement attempt by regime forces and crush any attacking force.

“Regime demands for the removal of Turkish forces from Syrian territories are unrealistic,” TRT HABER’s news website quoted Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu as saying on Friday.

Cavusoglu noted that terrorist groups are still a threat in the areas where Turkish forces are stationed in Syria.

“If we withdraw from those lands today, the regime will not rule them. Instead, they will be overrun by terrorist organizations,” he warned.

“This is a danger to us, to the regime, and to all of Syria,” added the minister.

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FM: Iraq Wants Iran-backed Factions to Lay Down Weapons

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaks during an interview in London, Britain, January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Marissa Davison
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaks during an interview in London, Britain, January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Marissa Davison
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FM: Iraq Wants Iran-backed Factions to Lay Down Weapons

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaks during an interview in London, Britain, January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Marissa Davison
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaks during an interview in London, Britain, January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Marissa Davison

Iraq is trying to convince powerful armed factions in the country that have fought US forces and fired rockets and drones at Israel to lay down their weapons or join official security forces, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said.

The push comes with a backdrop of seismic shifts in the Middle East that have seen Iran's armed allies in Gaza and Lebanon heavily degraded and Syria's government overthrown.

The incoming US Trump administration promises to pile more pressure on Tehran, which has long backed a number of political parties and an array of armed factions in Iraq.

Some Baghdad officials are concerned the status quo there may be upended next, but Hussein played this down in an interview with Reuters during an official visit to London.

"We don't think that Iraq is the next," Hussein said.

The government was in talks to rein in the groups while continuing to walk the tightrope between its ties to both Washington and Tehran, he said.
"Two or three years ago it was impossible to discuss this topic in our society," he said.

But now, having armed groups functioning outside the state was not acceptable.

"Many political leaders, many political parties started to raise a discussion, and I hope that we can convince the leaders of these groups to lay down their arms, and then to be part of the armed forces under the responsibility of the government," Hussein said.

Iraq's balancing act has been tested by Iran-backed Iraqi armed groups' attacks on Israel and on US troops in the country they say are in solidarity with Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war.

A promised Gaza ceasefire has the government breathing a sigh of relief, though uncertainty prevails over how the country may fare after Donald Trump becomes US president.

During the last Trump presidency, relations grew tense as he ordered the assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020, leading to an Iranian ballistic missile attack on an Iraqi base housing US forces.

"We hope that we can continue this good relationship with Washington," Hussein said. "It is too early now to talk about which policy President Trump is going to follow for Iraq or Iran."

Iraq will only be reassured about Syria when it sees an inclusive political process, Hussein said, adding Baghdad would supply the country with grain and oil once it could be assured it would go to all Syrians.
Baghdad was in talks with Syria's foreign minister over a visit to Iraq, he said.

"We are worried about the ISIS, so we are in contact with the Syrian side to talk about these things, but at the end to have a stable Syria means to have the representative of all components in the political process."

Baghdad and Washington last year agreed to end the US-led coalition's work by September 2026 and transition to bilateral military ties, but Hussein said that the developments in Syria would have to be watched.

"In the first place, we are thinking about security of Iraq and stability in Iraq. If there will be a threat to our country, of course it will be a different story," he said.