Bloomberg: Türkiye to supply military equipment to Syria

Türkiye plans to deliver military equipment to Syria and expand its ability to target Kurdish militants along the entire Syrian border, Bloomberg reports, citing Turkish officials familiar with the matter. 

The shipments, expected in the coming weeks, will include armoured vehicles, drones, artillery, missiles, and air-defence systems, to be deployed in northern Syria. Officials stressed that the deployment avoids Israel-controlled southwestern areas.

The planned military support is aimed at bolstering Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former Al-Qaeda commander who ousted Bashar al-Assad late last year. Supplies are intended to help Sharaa rebuild Syria’s army after Israel destroyed much of the former regime’s arsenal.

Türkiye is also concerned about Syria’s northeast, controlled by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Kurdish YPG, a key faction within the SDF, is linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which waged a decades-long insurgency against Türkiye. Ankara seeks to expand a nearly 30-year-old security agreement with Syria that currently allows strikes against Kurdish militants within five kilometres of the border, proposing to extend the permitted range to 30 kilometres.

The Turkish officials said they are counting on Sharaa to limit Kurdish demands for autonomy and restrict the SDF’s access to oil and gas fields, which Ankara fears could fund the PKK. While the SDF and Sharaa signed a deal in March to integrate the group into Syria’s national army, implementation has been slow.

Türkiye’s presidency declined to comment, and Syria’s information ministry did not respond to requests.

By Vugar Khalilov