Russian military reinforcements to the Kurdish areas in northern Syria amid Turkish threats to launch a ground operation
Russian forces sent military reinforcements Wednesday to areas controlled by the Kurdish forces and the Syrian army in the Aleppo governorate in northern Syria, in response to Turkish threats to launch a ground operation.
These Russian reinforcements are the first in the region since Turkey launched air strikes ten days ago, which it said targeted Kurdish fighters, amid Ankara’s threats to launch a new ground attack against their areas in Tal Rifaat (north of Aleppo), Ayn Arab (Kobani) and Manbij (northeast of Aleppo).
Residents of Tal Rifaat told AFP that Russian military reinforcements had arrived in the city and its surroundings, noting that the Russian forces had placed a new barrier at the demarcation line separating the areas controlled by the Kurdish forces and those under the control of Ankara and the Syrian factions loyal to it.
The Russian forces also strengthened their presence in the nearby Mengh military airport, which is controlled by the Syrian Army forces.
The Syria Democratic Forces, led by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, asked Russia to intervene with Ankara to prevent the implementation of its threats to launch a new ground offensive against its areas of control.
Russia, which is Damascus’ most prominent ally, has repeatedly urged Ankara, which supports factions in the Syrian opposition, not to escalate.
For years, Moscow has been coordinating with its allies, Tehran and Ankara, on the Syrian issue.
The city of Tal Rifaat is 15 kilometers away from the Turkish border, and it and nearby villages are controlled by Kurdish forces that include fighters who were displaced from neighboring Afrin years ago, in addition to the presence of Russian forces.
Tal Rifaat is surrounded by areas in which the controlling forces vary, between the Syrian army backed by Russia on the one hand, and Ankara and the Syrian factions loyal to it on the other hand.
Areas under the control of the Turkish forces separate Tal Rifaat from most of the other vast areas controlled by the Syria Democratic Forces in the north and northeast of the country.
The Russian reinforcements had also arrived in the vicinity of the border city of Ayn Arab (Kobani), while a security official in the city told AFP that Russian forces performed a patrol in the area, accompanied by a helicopter.
Russian forces are deployed in the Kurdish-controlled areas near the border, according to an agreement reached in 2019 to stop an attack during which Ankara took control of a border area.
Since 2016, Ankara has launched three ground operations, targeting mainly Kurdish fighters, and has taken control, along with loyal Syrian factions, of large areas near its borders.
