‘High time’ for Turkish-Syrian rapprochement: Russia’s top envoy to Iraq

Rudaw

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Russia’s ambassador to Iraq said on Thursday that it is “high time” for a rapprochement between Syria and Turkey following over a decade of strained ties, adding that preparation for a meeting at the foreign minister level is underway.

In response to a question by Rudaw English's Julian Bechocha during the Erbil Forum 2023, Elbrus Kutrashev said the time had come for a normalization of ties between Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan. 

"In general, the idea is that it's high time for normalizing relations between Syria and Turkey ... both sides are very careful in terms of what they are doing," Kutrashev stated.

Turkey and Syria enjoyed strong relations until a civil war erupted in Syria about a decade ago, with Erdogan entering the conflict by backing the rebels fighting against Assad’s regime. 

In late December, the Turkish and Syrian defense ministers held talks in Moscow, marking the first high-level meeting since the war in Syria began in 2011. 

"Priority number one for us is Syria... we support Syria as a country, not militarily only but economically as well. It is a burden for us that we have to carry because Syria is our ally," Kutrashev said as Moscow continues to be the Syrian regime's biggest ally.

Turkey, with the help of its Syrian proxies, has invaded several towns in northern and northwestern Syria. It has also carried out three military operations against Kurdish fighters since 2016. A rapprochement between Ankara and Damascus has caused concern among Kurds in Syria, as well the United States. 

Kutrashev said he was not aware of the involvement of Kurds being involved in the talks, adding that even if an agreement were to be reached “Damascus will protect them from any hostilities.” 

"The devil is in the details. The position of Kurds in Syria are not like what the Kurds have in Iraq ... In Syria ... Kurdish areas don't make one entity, they live in different places and in many places they are not the majority," Kutrashev on Syrian Kurds.

The US has said that it does not support the talks and Syrian Kurds have expressed their suspiciousness regarding the meetings. The potential normalization of ties between Assad and Erdogan has also sparked opposition from rebel groups in Syria backed by Turkey. 

"In northeast Syria [Rojava], Americans have just good business there. They steal Syrian oil and smuggle it to one neighboring country - which is friendly to Russia by the way," Kutrashev claimed about the American presence in Rojava.

Hundreds of US troops stationed in eastern Syria have fought alongside the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS). Syria and Russia have accused the US of stealing Syrian oil and selling it for a cheaper price elsewhere. 

Russia, Iraq, and the Kurdistan Region 

"The United States, we know they continue their sabotage efforts in terms of complicating and destroying Russian-Iraqi relationships. They failed until now, and I'm sure they'll continue failing,” Kutrashev said. 

"Failure is a good American tradition in the Middle East," he added.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Baghdad last month with a trip mainly aimed at solving the financial dues of Russian companies in Iraq. 

During his meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, Lavrov expressed 
“Russia's keenness on Iraq's security and stability, and its praise for Iraq's efforts in combating terrorism, and its pioneering role in easing tensions in the region.” 

Iraq and the Kurdistan Region share close economic ties with Russia as a number of Russian oil companies operate both in the Kurdistan Region and in oilfields in southern Iraq. 

When asked about the 2017 referendum for independence in the Kurdistan Region and Russia’s lack of official comments regarding it, the ambassador said "We never betrayed our friends and allies in this country. The referendum and what happened after that was a good example of what Americans do - that's just a mock, and you all know this.”

"This referendum was something unexpected for us and we didn't comment because anyway you comment will be considered support for this side and that side," Kutrashev stated about Russia's decision to remain silent.

Gazprom and Rosneft’s operations in the Kurdistan Region have continued as normal and have not been affected despite Baghdad’s pressure campaign on international oil companies (IOCs) working in the Region following a ruling by the Iraqi top court against the Region’s oil and gas law. 

Tension between Erbil and Baghdad has been high since the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court in February deemed the Kurdistan Region’s oil and gas law “unconstitutional”, hence striking the independence of the Region’s energy sector and jeopardizing its industry. The KRG has repeatedly challenged the constitutionality of the court’s ruling.