Syria: Turkey to deploy troops to Idlib province

Event

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey announced on Thursday, September 21, that Turkey will soon deploy troops to Idlib province to assist in the implementation of "de-escalation zones" agreed on by Astana talks participants (Russia, Turkey, and Iran) in August. Per the agreement, Erdoğan​ asserted that Turkish forces will be responsible for providing security within Idlib province, and Russia will provide security outside of Idlib province; details of the deployment and the implementation of "de-escalation zones" will reportedly be discussed in Ankara with Russian President Vladimir Putin next week.

Context

Idlib has suffered under the weight of heavy fighting during the Syrian war, and is today under full rebel control. The 150 km (90 mi) border shared by Turkey and Syria's Idlib province has become a security concern for Turkey, as Ha'yat Tahrir al-Sham - an opponent of the Turkish state and its main Syrian rebel ally, Harakat Ahrar al-Sham - took control of most of Idlib province in late July. Ahrar al-Sham has since abandoned its former positions around the Bab al-Hawa corridor, and has retreated into Turkey. Consequently, the Turkish government restricted the passage of non-humanitarian goods across the border amid heightened security concerns on August 11.

In general, Erdoğan has shown a greater will to project an assertive foreign policy in the Middle East in recent weeks. His announced deployment of troops to Syria's Idlib province also comes amid his other assertion that Turkey is weighing measures aimed at admonishing the Iraqi Kurdish independence referendum vote scheduled for Monday, September 25. Turkey's relations with the US-backed coalition have also been strained in recent months as the US-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) continue to expand their territorial control in northern Syria.

Syria is enmeshed in a complex civil war that started between the Assad government and opposition forces in March 2011, which has had a spillover effect onto the security situation in neighboring Turkey. Today, the conflict in Syria involves many parties, including the Syrian government, the Russian government, the Iranian government, the Turkish government, a United States-led coalition, and numerous armed groups on the ground (including the Islamic State) with competing goals. Multiple rounds of negotiations to establish a political solution to the civil war have taken place in Geneva. More recently, Russia-initiated rounds of peace talks have taken place in Astana and include Turkish and Iranian delegations, but do not include a US delegation as an active participant.

Advice

Due to extremely poor security conditions, Western governments generally advise against all travel to Syria, with some banning travel to the country. Professional security advice and support should be sought prior to any travel to Syria.