Dr Ahmad Merei, a Syrian MP and lecturer at Damascus University, has commented on the upcoming operation of Turkey in Syria.
Sputnik: The US has said that they will not support Turkey in its operation in northern Syria. Could this mean the final withdrawal of US forces from Syria? What does this mean for the region?
Dr Ahmad Merei: First of all, we said from the beginning of this war against Syria - that the US will not support Kurdish forces forever - because they used them for many goals. And now the US has to choose - Turkey or Kurdish forces. I think they chose Turkey as a state - because it’s an old ally of America and the Kurdish states - maybe they used them for something and this something is finished now. So I think Turkey will make this operation against Kurdish forces - but they will be supported by the American state because the US cannot say "Bye Bye", because the Kurdish state acts as groups, not as a state.
Sputnik: What can you say about the timing of this decision by the US – not to participate in the operation? How will this affect US-Turkish cooperation?
Dr Ahmad Merei: For sure, the US will not participate in this operation because the US cannot do anything against Turkey - especially at this time. So, now we listen to the US - that they will not support this operation – yes, because they cannot do anything and they can't say anything different about these words. So I think this operation is supported by America, but without announcing that. And I think this operation will support the relations between Turkey and the US because America announced now, by this, that "Turkey is our ally". So I think it's a very important step to support relations between them and especially at this time. So I think everything between the two states should go very well.
Sputnik: Regarding the Turkish operation itself – how long will this operation last and what is the main goal of it?
Dr Ahmad Merei: To be precise, I can't say that this operation will end tomorrow or after tomorrow. I think no one knows when this operation will end. I think, according to the Turkish state - they are saying that this operation will end "when we eliminate the terrorist groups" - they mean here the Kurdish forces. So, I think this operation will take many weeks, many months.
Sputnik: Does the US withdrawal from the region mean that Washington is leaving its Kurdish allies?
Dr Ahmad Merei: The US withdrawal from the region means that the US is leaving its allies, Kurdish allies. And we said many times and we called on the Kurdish forces to re-open the dialogue between the Syrian state and the Kurdish forces, or the Kurdish groups - because as I said at the beginning - the US cannot save their allies. And the US doesn't have allies - maybe they have the equipment, used them when they want to achieve their goals. So what we said about the Kurdish forces or the Kurdish groups - we were right.
Sputnik: How will the Syrian authorities react to this operation?
Dr Ahmad Merei: The Syrian state announced many times that any entrance - any Turkish entrance to Syrian land is Turkish aggression against the Syrian state and the Syrian people. And we said - if the Turkish state wants to make this border safe - we said – they have to come to Syria or to open dialogue with the Syrian state and to return to the Adana Agreement - because the Adana Agreement offers good procedures to secure this zone or this border. And by this step or by this operation against the Syrian state or against the Syrian land, we think that Turkey makes the same mistake that they did it in the past.
Sputnik: What will the reaction of the other players in the region be?
Dr Ahmad Merei: About the reaction of the other players in this region - I can say the most important role in this zone is the Russian role and I can say that because there is cooperation between Russia and Turkey. I think this operation took up Russian approval to start.