Moscow, Ankara close ranks against regional threats

ANKARA: Amid escalating regional tensions, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Ankara on Thursday to meet his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The meeting is expected to focus on coordinated counterterrorism efforts in Syria’s Idlib province, and the recent deal to supply the Russian S-400 missile system to Ankara, which has sparked worries among Turkey’s NATO allies.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday said the two countries enjoy close trade, economic, cultural and military ties, and “they cooperate in ensuring regional security, including in Syria.”
Two weeks prior, Turkey, Iran and Russia inked a deal to establish “de-escalation zones” in some Syrian provinces, including Idlib, which is dominated by militants. The three countries also agreed to deploy observers to the zones to monitor any violations.
Dr. Dimitar Bechev, non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center, told Arab News that the Putin-Erdogan meeting “may serve to clarify many technicalities about the S-400 that are still unknown to the public, like the offset terms, production in Turkey and technology transfer.”
He said Ankara would be pleased that Moscow’s relations with the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) have been strained since Russia recently bombed the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) — an alliance of Arab and Kurdish fighters that includes the YPG — near Deir Ezzor.
Timur Akhmetov, a researcher at the Russian International Affairs Council, said even though Moscow and Ankara reached an agreement over Idlib, it is important for Putin to get personal guarantees from Erdogan on several important issues.
“First, Russia wants Turkey to speed up demarcation between the moderate opposition and terrorists in the province,” Akhmetov told Arab News.
“Second, Turkey may be asked to contribute to alleviating the humanitarian situation during a possible military operation,” he said.
“Finally, Turkey is expected to motivate the moderate opposition to start negotiations with the central government after the counterterrorist operation,” he added.
“In sum, Russian and Syrian forces are about to start an operation in the densely populated province, and Turkey’s role should be to minimize its negative consequences.”
The Kremlin’s stance on Iraqi Kurdistan’s independence bid, in defiance of its neighbors, is also an issue. “Russia neither opposes nor openly endorses Kurdish aspirations,” said Akhmetov.
Turkey, home to the largest Kurdish population in the region, considers the move a direct threat to its domestic security.
Bechev said the referendum is not as important for Moscow as it is for Ankara, but Turkey may try to tie the purchase of the S-400 with Russian support for its stance on the issue.
Akhmetov said: “Russia wouldn’t want to have to bear responsibility for a possible crisis.” Russian oil giant Rosneft’s recent decision to invest in Iraqi Kurdistan must be seen in this light, he added.
“The success of the project depends on the stability of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which depends on Turkey. So I don’t think Russia would want to destroy positive relations between the KRG and Ankara.”
Erdogan is expected to pay an official visit to Tehran next week.

Moscow, Ankara close ranks against regional threats