Turkey’s failed coup could be good news for international action on Syria

Turkey has been shaken to its core by an attempted military coup on the 15 July 2016. In the aftermath, the government was likely to be inward-looking, limited by capacity constraints and a hobbled administration, and less focused than ever on efforts to remove Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from power.

This could represent an important turn in efforts to quell the Syria conflict, with Ankara willing to adopt a new middle way forward, particularly on the Assad question. Whether an intentional strategic shift or an indirect consequence of an all-consuming internal focus, this shift may pave the way for a new international convergence behind the priority of de-escalation, instead of the goal of securing Assad’s near-term removal.

ESO: Background information: With friends like these: Turkey, Russia, and the end of an unlikely alliance http://www.europeansources.info/record/with-friends-like-these-turkey-russia-and-the-end-of-an-unlikely-alliance/

ESO: Background information: Turkey’s Post-Coup Reverberations Are Just Beginning http://www.europeansources.info/record/turkeys-post-coup-reverberations-are-just-beginning/

ESO: Background information: Turkey’s Erdogan declares state of emergency after coup bid http://www.europeansources.info/record/turkeys-erdogan-declares-state-of-emergency-after-coup-bid/

ESO: Background Information: The amazing speed of Turkey’s foreign policy U-turn http://www.europeansources.info/record/the-amazing-speed-of-turkeys-foreign-policy-u-turn/

EEAS: Countries: Syria and the European Union http://eeas.europa.eu/syria/index_en.htm

---