FM: Turkey wants no conflict with Israel in Syria

Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, Hakan Fidan said that if the Syrian government wanted to have “certain understandings” with Israel, then that was its own decision.

Israel has launched repeated air strikes on Syria and has been capturing more territory since the ousting of former President Bashar al-Assad in December.

Fidan’s comments come as Turkey steps up efforts to strike a deal with Damascus that would give Ankara control over northern Syria’s Tiyas airbase, also known as T4, where it plans to deploy air defence systems.

Sources familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye earlier this week that Ankara and Damascus have been negotiating a defence pact since December.

The agreement would see Turkey providing air cover and military protection for Syria’s new government, which currently lacks a functioning military.

Fidan warned that while he did not want to see Israel and Turkey – longstanding allies that have fallen out over Israel’s assault on Gaza – collide in Syria, Israel’s attacks risked future regional instability.

Although Israel views a Turkish military presence in Syria as a potential threat, Ankara aims to stabilise the country by leveraging its military capabilities and filling the power vacuum left by the withdrawal of Russia and Iran.

Omer Ozkizilcik, a non-resident fellow for the Syria Project in the Atlantic Council, told MEE that Israel’s prime aim in Syria was to have a “weak Damascus”.

“With the fall of the Assad regime, Israel sees a united Syria as a geopolitical risk. Its strategy to exploit, especially the Druze, but also the Kurds and the Alawites, to prevent a unified Syria is not going as Israel hoped,” he added.

“So, Israel is lobbying to maintain US sanctions against Syria and continues to target positions in Syria to prevent stability and refugee returns.”

Ozkizilcik stated the deployment of Turkish air defences and air force to Syria would limit Israel’s freedom to control the skies.

“Turkey’s role in Syria will have no effect towards Israel. It will focus on countering [the Islamic State group] as Turkey wants to convince Trump to withdraw from Syria and to deter a possible Iran-led attack on Syria from Iraq or Lebanon. I think Israel also knows this,” he explained.

“In short, Israel doesn’t see a threat from Turkey in Syria but doesn’t want to be contained in its current operational freedom to bomb Syria.”