Nine months of the 'Terror-Free Turkey' project's Syria leg: a balance sheet

Those who govern the country kept insisting that the "terror-free Turkey" project was a "state project" and said, "This time we will succeed, there is no turning back... The arrow has left the bow, the ships have been burned."

What sets the current project apart from its predecessors is that MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli — who had shown the greatest resistance to PKK-related opening initiatives — is now spearheading it, and that the so-called solution was supposed to cover the PKK's components in Syria, Iran, and Iraq as well.

Otherwise, Erdoğan and the AKP had already insisted that the previous opening initiatives, which Bahçeli had fiercely opposed, were also not "a political party's project" but a "state project," and had claimed, "The arrow has already been fired; this matter has now entered the path to resolution."

Did the "State Mind" Fail to See?

A year ago, after Assad was toppled through a concerted effort and HTŞ leader Colani was installed as Syria's leader under the name Şara, the pro-government media wrote that the Syrian National Army, aligned with Turkey, would liberate the area from the PKK, that orders for the operation were being awaited, and that an army of 25,000 had encircled the PKK/YPG.

Not only the media, but also sources from the Ministry of National Defence announced that they "believed the new administration in Syria and its army, the SMO, together with the Syrian people, would liberate the regions occupied by the terrorist organisation PKK/YPG."... Former MIT chief and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, one of the architects of the "state project," said that "YPG/PKK is primarily the problem of the new administration in Damascus, and if they handle this matter properly, there will be no reason for us to intervene."

Meanwhile, the US and the UN announced that a "ceasefire" had been reached between Turkey and the PKK/YPG/SDG. The Ministry of National Defence brushed off this claim as a "slip of the tongue." However, Colani-Şara also announced that "while Turkey was preparing to launch a full-scale war there, they had asked them to wait in order to open space for negotiations."

In the end, on 10 March, Colani and Mazlum Kobani were brought to the table and an 8-point agreement was reached.

According to the agreement — which the pro-government media called "YPG's surrender" — the terrorist organisation was to dissolve itself by 31 December and integrate into the Syrian administration. Yet Mazlum Kobani had barely waited for the ink to dry before he began speaking of "decentralisation."

Two days after that agreement, we wrote the following:

"It is so obvious that the wool is being pulled over everyone's eyes!.. Commissions will be set up, they will hold talks, and efforts will be made to implement the agreement by year's end and so on. In other words, the PKK/YPG/PYD in the guise of the SDG has bought itself at least another 9 months."

The situation as of 31 December speaks for itself. After 9 months, not a single item in the agreement has seen any progress; the terrorist organisation remains at the same "decentralist" position, and Ankara keeps issuing warning after warning.

Putting the Cart Before the Horse

Why did it turn out this way? Because they put the cart before the horse again — that is, instead of engaging with the US, the patron of the "greater Israel" project and of terrorist organisations, they chose to deal with and trust the terrorist leader on İmralı, who is nothing more than a puppet.

"The founding leader called on all components of the organisation" they said — it didn't work... The terrorist leader's men in parliament said "Rojava and Syria are Öcalan's red line" — they didn't believe it... Bahçeli asked the "founding leader" twice to address the SDG/YPG/PYD — he didn't do it... Just for this purpose they sent a member of parliament all the way to İmralı — again, nothing came of it.

Finally, wherever he was seen and whoever fetched and brought him; they had the terrorist leader publish a New Year's message. He did mention the 10 March agreement, but complained about "years of monolithic governance" and proposed "a democratic political model in which peoples can govern themselves together." Furthermore, he called on Turkey to assume "a facilitating, constructive, and dialogue-oriented role" in this process. In short: he issued a call not to the terrorist organisation, but to Turkey.

Consolation Prize: Trump's Praise for Erdoğan

Ankara's decision to hold only Israel responsible for the separatist terrorist organisation's defiance of Turkey is a curiosity in itself. As if the US had not been training and equipping it for decades, placing it under its protection, making it a partner in the anti-ISIS coalition and turning it into a "ground force." In reality, the US, the UK, and France cooked it up on Israel's behalf, and Israel is now simply collecting the proceeds!..

What do we have as a "consolation prize"? Trump's praise for Erdoğan...

Let us recall those praises (!) from Trump — who hosted Netanyahu, whom Erdoğan had called a "pharaoh" just last Friday after prayers, at his private residence and even spent New Year's with him.

First, about Netanyahu: "He is a wartime prime minister and he has done an extraordinary job. In my opinion, if the wrong prime minister had been chosen, Israel would not exist right now." He noted that he respects Syrian President Şara, that he is a strong leader, that he will ensure Israel gets along with Syria, and that he and Netanyahu share a common understanding on Syria. About Erdoğan, he said the following:

- "Remember that it was President Erdoğan who helped the most in removing the very bad ruler in Syria. And he never asked for credit for it, but he really had a very big part in it. Bibi agrees with that. I agree with that. President Erdoğan deserves serious credit for what he did. He got rid of some very bad people. They had been trying to do this in Syria for a thousand years under different names, but President Erdoğan did it. And we respect him greatly for that, I respect him greatly."

- "Erdoğan is a good friend of mine. I respect him. Bibi respects him too and there will be no problem between them. We know him very well and you have seen that I have done things with President Erdoğan in Turkey that nobody else could do. He did a fantastic job. I am with Erdoğan all the way. I am with Bibi all the way. Nothing will happen."

- (On F-35 sales to Turkey) "We are considering this very seriously. They will never use them against Israel, I promise."

If Trump directed even one percent of these praises at, say, CHP leader Özgür Özel, the government and its media would have raised hell, wouldn't they? But what did they do? Just as they ignored the expressions in the terrorist leader's New Year's message, they not only turned a blind eye to the man's seizure of our sovereign rights over the F-35s, but also drew epic conclusions from Trump's praises and claimed that "Netanyahu once again failed to get what he hoped for from the US."

Let us also look at the results of what Trump called "Erdoğan's removal of bad people in Syria."

Israel eliminated Syria's military bases and occupied its south... It set up checkpoints...

And Trump — whose praises they boast about — handed the Golan Heights to Israel. He even said, "If I had known, I wouldn't have given it away for free."

When the same Trump, during his first presidency in 2019, said that the Golan belonged to Israel, Erdoğan reacted by saying, "It is unthinkable for Turkey and the OIC to remain silent on such a sensitive matter, to bow to faits accomplis. We will never allow, and cannot allow, the legitimisation of the occupation of the Golan Heights." This time, however, not a word came from Erdoğan.

Whose Man Is Şara?

Let us also put on the table the position of Şara — to whom Erdoğan has been sending ministers, the MIT chief, and the Chief of General Staff every other day.

Trump hosted a Syrian president at the White House for the first time last November... He sent the message "Şara is my man, I will work with him"... Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was also invited to that meeting, and when the topic turned to the SDG, Şara — as if to say "I will do what they want, but Turkey is resisting" — asked Fidan to brief Trump on the latest developments regarding integration.

And after that meeting, Trump lifted sanctions on Syria... Syria joined the International Coalition to Combat ISIS, thereby becoming a partner with the SDG, which is part of that coalition.

Let us simply note that even Fatih Çekirge of Hürriyet yesterday observed: "[In Syria] Tensions keep rising... What will Şara do? It appears that Şara, who gives the impression of being powerless in the face of the US and Israel, is not in favour of using force. Damascus is also staying silent in response to Turkey's offer of 'we will provide military support if the Syrian administration requests it.' Moreover, a figure from the Syrian administration is openly saying they do not want to use force."

In short: Erdoğan has not said "We may come suddenly one night" for quite some time, yet after 9 months there is the smell of an operation in the air. Talk is of supporting an operation by the Damascus administration — as if it still had an army, soldiers, and weapons — while hopes are pinned on Arab tribes.

Let us ask just one question:

The structure that Turkey trained and equipped for years, that Erdoğan likened to "the Kuvayi Milliye forces of our War of Independence," and that was called the "Free Syrian Army" or the "Syrian National Army" — why was it integrated into Şara's forces so hastily, without sounding the depths of the well?.. Why is its name never mentioned now, and what on earth will it do at this point?!

Müyesser YILDIZ

4 January 2026