Türkiye takes control of rebel forces that overthrew Syrian president

US President-elect Donald Trump said Türkiye controlled the opposition military groups that overthrew Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on December 8.

"The people who were involved (in the overthrow of al-Assad) are now controlled by Turkey. And that's okay, it's a different way of fighting," President-elect Trump said on December 16 at his first press conference since winning the 2024 US presidential election, according to Politico .

Donald Trump, then US President, during a joint press conference with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House on November 13, 2019.

By backing the opposition, “Türkiye has carried out an unfriendly takeover without losing many lives,” and Ankara has wanted to achieve this for thousands of years, according to Mr. Trump.

Mr Trump also said that Türkiye would "hold the key" to what happens in Syria, where an opposition coalition backed by Ankara overthrew the al-Assad government on December 8. The coalition is led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group.

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Mr. Trump also assessed that Türkiye has a "large military force" that he said "has not been exhausted by war".

These are believed to be Mr Trump's first comments on how he views Türkiye's role in the Syrian conflict.

Turkey, which controls large swaths of northern Syria after a series of cross-border attacks against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), has been a major backer of opposition groups seeking to oust al-Assad since the Syrian civil war began in 2011, Reuters reported.

The YPG played a major role in the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a key US ally that defeated the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria in 2019.

Since Mr al-Assad was ousted, Washington and Ankara have held talks on countering the rise of IS in Syria. Washington currently maintains about 900 troops in eastern Syria as a hedge against IS.

Asked what he would do with the US troops, Trump was vague, instead pointing to the strength of the Turkish military and emphasizing his relationship with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "Erdogan is a great guy for me... He's built a very strong military," Trump said at a press conference.

There is currently no information about Türkiye's or HTS's reaction to Mr. Trump's statement.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ong-trump-tho-nhi-ky-kiem-soat-luc-luong-noi-day-lat-do-tong-thong-syria-185241217114402937.htm