Mahmut Hamsici – BBC Turkish
The allegations that there is a process for the normalization of relations between Turkey and Syria have come to the fore frequently in recent years.
The developments that took place last week, on the other hand, deepened the discussions about the ‘process’.
In a report published by Reuters news agency, National Intelligence Organization Head Hakan Fidan and his Syrian counterpart Ali Mamluk had meetings in Damascus recently.
There was no denial of the news from official sources in Turkey.
Hürriyet newspaper, on the other hand, wrote that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a speech at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s Samarkand summit, “I wish Assad had come to Uzbekistan, I would meet him”.
Commenting on these developments in BBC Turkish, Ömer Önhon, who was the last Ambassador of Turkey to Damascus before the diplomatic relations were severed, states that the process seems to have reached a certain maturity.
Önhon, who also has a book called “Syria Through the Eyes of the Ambassador”, says that what is expected now is to move the talks to a political ground.
WHAT IS THE PROCESS?
Önhon believes that this report can be accepted as true, since Reuters’ report did not deny any denial.
From this point of view, Önhon comments that the middle process has reached a certain maturity:
“President Erdogan’s statements on his way back from Sochi in August, followed by Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu’s statements, made it clear that a process had been initiated between Syria and Turkey. The issue was brought to the public agenda in this way. Since the President made that statement, the talks had already reached a certain maturity. Then, after the government brought the issue to the agenda, it seemed that there was not much reaction.
“The process must have reached a certain maturity because it was announced that it was discussed at the level of intelligence chiefs, moreover, in Damascus. And when you consider the position of our head of intelligence in Turkey, it is possible to understand the importance of this very well.”
Önhon said, “There is a serious process, but is it an easy process? There’s no way it could be, because there are so many serious problems there. These are not issues that can be easily resolved. Therefore, it is progressing on a very bumpy road, but the process continues.”
WHAT ARE THE OBSTACLES TO NORMALIZATION?
According to Önhon, what are the biggest obstacles to normalization?
Önhon states that there are many problems, but he gathers the most important ones under four headings:
“The first is Turkey’s support for the opposition. The place where opposition organizations operate politically is Turkey. What will these be?
“Secondly, we have soldiers on Syrian territory for our security. What will happen to our soldiers stationed in the territory of a foreign country? Of course, Syria has serious objections to this issue.
“Third, there is the YPG issue. What will these be in the future?
“The return of refugees in Turkey is one of the main items on the agenda. It is one of the main agenda items in domestic politics. But returns are not such an easy task. These people have been away from their homeland for eleven years. What will these be?”
Önhon states that despite the difficulty of the subjects, it is necessary to start from somewhere, and he believes that the beginning has been made.
“NORMALIZATION WITH SYRIA IS DIFFERENT FROM OTHER PROCESSES”
It seems that Ankara has been trying to normalize relations with some countries that have problems recently.
“Relations with many countries have deteriorated. Today, the government must have realized that this is not a sustainable path, because it has started interim correction moves in countries where we are at odds. First, moves were initiated with Egypt, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia,” Önkol said, and he believes that improving relations with Syria will have much more special aspects:
“Relations with Syria have two dimensions that directly affect Turkey. One of them is the issue of security. So YPG, PKK etc. The second is the issue of refugees. We have no such issues with Egypt, Israel, or the United Arab Emirates. These security and asylum issues with Syria are issues that can have an impact on people’s voting orientation. Therefore, before such a critical election, it is very important for the government to be able to do something about security and asylum seekers, or to appear to be able to do something.”
WHAT ARE THE STEPS TO TAKE?
Önhon says that there are steps that both sides should take mutually in order to deepen the process on the way to normalization in the coming period.
The former ambassador gives some examples:
“The steps that the two sides have to take are interdependent. For example, Syrians say, “Turkish soldiers should withdraw from our lands”. Our side has already said this openly, we have no intention of staying there. Our soldiers are currently in Syria against the threats arising from the security vacuum there. They say we will withdraw when this security gap is filled and the threats are removed. Of course, Turkey will withdraw from there, but if the places we evacuated will be filled by either YPG or ISIS and pose a threat to our lands, isn’t it too early to take such a step?
“On the other hand, the issue of refugees… We think that refugees should now return to their countries. The war is over, efforts are being made to ensure lasting peace and stability, but the conditions there must be suitable for them to return. Here, of course, Turkey’s expectation is that Assad will create those conditions and that the refugees who will return can go there without seeing such a threat or danger. Otherwise, if they see danger, they will not go anyway. And if they go and see danger, they will return immediately.”
WHERE DOES THE PROCESS EVOLUTION?
Önhon is of the opinion that what is expected from now on about where the process can evolve is to move the talks to the political ground:
“These things always go step by step. Heads of intelligence are probably discussing more about what can be done in the field of security. They also discuss the transfer of talks to a political ground. What is the political ground? On the political ground, senior state officials; There may be deputy foreign ministers, they may be foreign ministers themselves, they are expected to come together and talk.
“For example, what did Çavuşoğlu say a year ago? He said he met Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mikdad by chance in the corridor in Belgrade. Maybe they will coincide with each other in the last United Nations meetings, right? If it doesn’t, maybe they can come together on its margin, in the first international environment after that. These are not clear. It has to do with how things are, how far the talks between them are and how politically acceptable it is.”
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