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War and Terror: Turkey Downs Russian Fighter to Draw NATO and US Deeper into Syrian Quagmire
Posted on Thursday, November 26 @ 02:21:48 UTC
Topic: Syria
|
 By Mike Whitney
November 25, 2015 - Counterpunch
On Tuesday, Turkey shot down a Russian warplane that was
carrying out military operations against jihadi groups in
Northern Syria. The downing of the Su-24 fighter jet is part of
a broader plan by the administration of Turkish President Tayyip
Recep Erdogan to topple the secular government of Syrian
President Bashar al Assad and to establish “safe zones” on the
Syrian side of the Turkish-Syrian border. Erdogan needs the safe
zones to provide a sanctuary for the militant extremists who are
the footsoldiers in his war against Syria. The downing of the
Russian fighter is a desperate attempt by Erdogan to incite a
reaction from Russia that will draw either NATO or the United
States deeper into a conflict which has dragged on for 4 and a
half years and killed 250,000 people.
Unlike the Obama administration, that has been willing to arm
and train jihadi groups to conduct its proxy-war against Assad
in Syria, Erdogan is a true believer, a committed Islamist who
has done everything in his power to roll back democracy in
Turkey, to establish one-man rule, to destroy the independent
judiciary, to silence the free press, and to establish a
conservative and intolerant Islamic state. Erdogan is what many
would call a “Koolaid drinker”, a man who believes that his
support for disparate and vicious terrorist groups that have
decimated Syria, laid its civilian infrastructure to waste, and
displaced more than half the population is “God’s work”. Make no
mistake, the Turkish government is the modern-day Caliphate. The
fact that its government officials dress in nicely-tailored
suits rather than black pajamas, is merely a way to divert
attention from their extreme fanaticism and their covert support
for liver-eating fundamentalist savages.
In the seven weeks since Russia began military
operations in Syria, nearly all of the gains of the
US-Turkey-Saudi-Qatar jihadi coalition have been wiped out. The
decisive battle took place more than a week ago at Kuweris
airbase east of Aleppo. This was the tipping point for the war
although the imminent fall of Aleppo is bound to attract more
notoriety. It’s clear now that the Russian-led coalition is
winning the war, has foiled US attempt to remove Assad, and that
the bulk of the foreign mercenaries will either be killed or
captured. The Obama administration realizes that the current
phase of the war is hopeless and has started to implement a
fallback plan to control territory in E Syria that is critical
for future pipeline corridors. In contrast, the Turkish
government is completely unwilling to accept the fact that its
plan has failed which is why it has embarked on this risky
strategy to draw either NATO or Washington deeper into the fray.
Check this out from a Tuesday battlefield
report from South Front:
"The Syrian forces backed up by the
Russian warplanes, pushed back the militant groups from
nearly 200 kilometers of land in the coastal province of
Lattakia, military sources said Monday. On Sunday, the
Syrian army and popular forces purged the terrorists and
advanced to areas near the Turkish borders. The ground
reports argue that the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) took control
of Zahia heights, 2km from the joint borders with Turkey.”
Can you see what’s going on? The Russian-led
coalition is closing in on the Syria-Turkish border which will
put an end to Erdogan’s dream of toppling Assad or continuing to
fuel the war with terrorists that are provided a safe haven on
Syrian soil. This is why the Su-24 fighter was shot down on
Tuesday. It is a desperate attempt to salvage the failed
strategy of toppling a secular government and replacing it with
friendly Islamic extremists who hew to Erdogan’s twisted
worldview.
By the way, readers should take a minute and
review the video of the “moderate” headchoppers that the US
supports in Syria paying special attention to their moderate
treatment of prisoners. The Russian pilot was captured by these
“freedom fighters”, shot twice in the chest and then his clothes
were ripped off so he could be moderately photographed. These
are the fine fellows that Uncle Sam would like to see in
Damascus heading the government because, as we all know, “Assad
has lost legitimacy.” (See
here.)
For the last three days, I have been following
a fast-evolving plan by the Turkish Terrorist Government (TTG)
to create a false flag operation that would draw either the US
or NATO deeper into the war in Syria reversing Obama’s recent
commitment NOT to deploy ground troops to the warzone. On
Saturday, Turkish newspapers reported that 1,500 Syrian Turkmen
had fled to the Turkish border for safety. The reasons that were
given were that the Russian warplanes were bombing areas where
ISIS was not located. True, ISIS is not located in these Turkmen
villages by the border; rather the barbarians that you see in
the video are located there. These men belong to the jihadi
groups that that have been funded, armed and trained by Turkey
and the US and who are fighting to topple Assad. Reasonable
people who would like to see an end to terrorism, should feel
supportive of Putin’s efforts to annihilate these monsters.
Instead, the Turkish government has been trying to make the case
that Russia is bombing innocent civilians. Now check out this
story (from Monday) in Turkey’s leading newspaper Hurriyet:
“Turkey has called for a U.N. Security
Council meeting to discuss attacks on Turkmens in
neighboring Syria, according to Prime Ministry sources, with
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu saying his government will
“not hesitate” to take the required measures on Syrian soil
to protect the Turkmen people…
Turkey is in discussions with the United
States and Russia over the bombing of the villages and has
sent a letter to Britain, the current holder of the U.N.
Security Council’s presidency, asking for the subject to be
taken up, sources from Davutoglu’s office told Reuters on
Nov. 23…
Speaking to reporters late on Nov. 22,
Davutoglu recalled that he was engaged in constant contact
with both Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar and
National Intelligence Organization (MIT) Chief Hakan Fidan
over the weekend concerning alleged Russian air raids on
Turkmen villages near the Syrian-Turkish border. Sources,
meanwhile, told Reuters that Davutoglu had consulted on the
intelligence dimension of the issue with Akar and Fidan.
“Our security forces have been instructed
to retaliate against any development that would threaten
Turkey’s border security,” the prime minister said. “If
there is an attack that would lead to an intense influx of
refugees to Turkey, required measures would be taken both
inside Syria and Turkey,” he added.
“Looking at background of these attacks,
in a region where very clearly there is no element of Deash
(ISIS), where there is no terrorist element, first Russian
airplanes come and then with support from foreign fighters.
“We will also take the required measures
diplomatically for the protection of our brothers and
sisters in the place where they are located and for the
protection of their human rights in the face of any threat,”
he also stated.” (Turkey
urges UN to act to protect Turkmens in Syria, Hurriyet)
So is the Turkish PM correct in saying the
Russians are bombing the Turkmen civilians forcing them to flee
from their homes. Not according to Turkmen leader Ali Türkmani.
Here’s what he said:
“There is a perception operation that is being
waged over the Turkmens. The regime will of course attempt to
maintain its territorial integrity. As such, threats from
al-Nusra and the Free Syrian Army are being targeted [by Russian
air strikes]. It’s not correct to say the Turkmens are being
targeted.”
So civilians are not being targeted, but the
Turkish government is supplying weapons and ammo to the
terrorists as this article in the Turkish Daily Zaman proves:
“Several trucks bound for Syria were
stopped at the beginning of last year by Turkish gendarmerie
forces upon instructions by a prosecutor. It turned out they
contained weapons.
The AK Party government claimed for months that the trucks
only included humanitarian aid, but a report published by
the Cumhuriyet daily in May last year revealed that the
trucks contained weapons.
According to the daily’s report, a truck,
which is thought to be one of many, contained 1,000
artillery shells, 50,000 machine gun rounds, 30,000 heavy
machine gun rounds and 1,000 mortar shells.
The government was accused of sending the
weapons to radical Islamist groups in Syria, but Davutoglu
swore in June that the trucks were bound for Turkmens. In
contrast, Turkmens had earlier denied receiving any weapons
from Turkey.” (Turkey calls on UN Security Council to convene for Turkmens in Syria, Today’s Zaman)
So what is the game-plan here? What is Turkey
really up to?
Well, first of all, they are trying to set up
a safe zone on sovereign Syrian territory so they can continue
to spread terror across Syria. Check out this clip from the
Daily Sabah and you’ll see how these Turkmen radicals who are
allies of Ankara are seizing villages to create the safe zone:
“Syrian opposition groups supported by
Turkish and US warplanes took control of two Turkmen towns
in Northern Syria early Saturday, Anadolu Agency
reported….The operation was supported by six Turkish F-16s,
four US F-15s and an AC-130 joined the offensive along with
three drones.
Security sources added that this success
in the fight against DAESH that can be defined as the first
step for the creation of a DAESH-free zone in Northern
Syria….
Speaking about Turkey’s stance on the
recent developments in Northern Syria, President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan said in a live broadcast on Wednesday that
declaring no-fly and safe zones is crucial to resolve the
Syrian Crisis….Erdogan further stated that Turkey will
continue to carry out anti-terror operations until concrete
results are achieved and peace is restored.” (First
step for the safe zone in N. Syria: opposition groups take
two Turkmen towns from DAESH, Daily Sabah)
Whether you call it an ISIS-free zone or not
is irrelevant. The fact is, the Turkish government (with US air
support) is trying to annex Syrian territory for its own
nefarious purposes. That much is clear.
The downing of the Russian Su-24 fighter fits
perfectly with the way in which the Turkish government has been
ratcheting up tensions on the border, using its jihadi allies to
seize Syrian territory, and trying to incite a violent reaction
that will force greater NATO or US involvement. I seriously
doubt that Putin is gullible enough to take the bait and
overreact to this obvious and pathetic provocation in Ankara. He
will exact his pound of flesh at some other time, a time of his
own choosing.
Mike Whitney
lives in Washington state. He is a contributor to Hopeless:
Barack Obama and the Politics of Illusion (AK
Press). Hopeless is also available in a Kindle
edition. He can be reached at fergiewhitney@msn.com.
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