Turkey faces losses in Syria east, west of the Euphrates River
Ankara’s attempts to play Russia and the United States off against each other may be gaining it very little and could leave it losing more than it expected.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s reliance on Russia to secure Ankara’s demands in Syria has hit a stone wall in Idlib. Turkish-Russian ties may be entering a new phase marked by latent tensions after the air attack on a Turkish military convoy Aug. 19 in the northwestern Syrian province. This would also end the honeymoon between the two countries, which got an added boost with Turkey’s purchase of Russian-made S-400 air defense systems.
Turkey’s job with the United States is not any easier. Ankara is trying to overcome its differences with Washington over the presence of American-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) fighters east of the Euphrates River.
