Türkiye says its embassy in Damascus to open on Saturday (Anadolu Agency)
On the collapse of the Bashar Assad regime earlier this month in the face of rapid anti-regime advances, Fidan said Türkiye “paved the way for this to happen in a bloodless manner” by continuing to pursue talks with “two key actors,” referring to Russia and Iran.
…
*Fidan said before the latest developments, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was controlling an area where 5 million Syrians were living and highlighted that they have gained experience in providing municipal services, education services, basic services, transportation and many other services in the past 5-6 years. [Idlib]
Related:
New Syria govt won’t recognise PKK/YPG terror group’s authority — Fidan (TRT)
Russia, Iran told not to intervene militarily
Fidan said his country had urged Russia and Iran not to intervene militarily to support Bashar al Assad as anti-regime fighters mounted their lightning advance on Damascus that ended with Assad’s ouster and his flight to Moscow.
“The most important thing was to talk to the Russians and Iranians to ensure that they didn’t enter the equation militarily. We had meetings with (them) and they understood,” Fidan told NTV television.
He said if Moscow and Tehran, both key Assad allies since the start of the civil war in 2011, had come to Assad’s aid, the opposition fighters could still have won but the outcome could have been far more violent.
“If Assad had received support, the opposition could have achieved victory with their determination, but it would have taken a long time and could have been bloody,” he said.
Türkiye’s aim was to “hold focused talks with the two important power players to ensure minimum loss of life,” Fidan said.
Moscow assesses relations with Türkiye (RT)
“Bilateral relations are not disrupted, as you know, we are conducting a dialogue with Türkiye on all issues,” he said.
The deputy FM invoked a meeting between the top diplomats of Türkiye, Iran, and Russia held on Saturday in Doha, Qatar, as an example of continuing contacts.
“There is an agenda that includes Türkiye, and we will continue to discuss all regional issues with them,” Grushko added.
Assad’s collapse was coming – everyone just looked away (RT)
Meanwhile, Assad’s underpaid, demoralized army, bled dry by years of civil war, continued to disintegrate. For a time, Iranian proxies like Hezbollah propped up his forces, but by 2024, they’d shifted their attention to fighting Israel. Attempts to draw Russia further into Syria’s quagmire fell flat. Moscow, busy elsewhere, had no interest in bailing Assad out.
So when the final crisis hit, Assad found himself alone. His allies stayed away, his army scattered, and an enraged, starving populace turned on the government. There was no one left to protect him.
But Syria is not Afghanistan. The country is a mosaic of hostile factions, many with longstanding grudges. The SNA and HTS themselves once battled for dominance in Idlib, despite both being pro-Turkish. There are also the Kurds in the northeast, the Alawites on the coast, the Druze in the south, and various US-backed factions in the southeast. Then there’s ISIS, still lurking in the desert, ready to exploit the chaos.
Syria seems destined to follow Libya’s post-Gaddafi trajectory: a failed state fractured into zones of influence, ruled by warlords and foreign proxies. This would be a disaster not only for Syrians but for the Middle East as a whole.
US and Türkiye agree on Syria settlement – Blinken (RT)
Washington’s secretary of state believes putting too much pressure on the Kurds could lead to a resurgence of Islamic State
Syria’s Rojava [Where They Run Torture Camps] Is in Grave Danger +
Syria: A Battle Lost Amid a Wider War
Hezbollah’s Role in the Syrian War
The SDF equals the YPG/PKK/Kurds: A timeline of the PKK’s war on Turkey
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 