Germany's large Kurdish and Turkish communities are a major factor in its unique geopolitical role in the Syria conflict. Kurdish leaders in Germany say Berlin needs to up the pressure on Ankara to stop all-out war.
Image: Imago/ZumaPress/S. Babbar
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The Turkish military action in the Kurdish regions of northern Syria has exposed the German government's awkward tightrope-walk in its policy in the region.
Germany is part of a United Nations alliance that provides humanitarian relief in the Kurdish area of northern Syria, where it sent some €50 million ($55 million) in 2017, while the German military helps to train Kurdish Peshmerga fighters as part of its mission in northern Iraq.
At the same time, the German air force helps the Turkish military by flying reconnaissance missions in the area for NATO, of which Turkey is also a member.
At a regular government press conference on Wednesday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Christofer Burger aired the government's official position one more time: "We have repeatedly called on the Turkish government to refrain from a military intervention in northeastern Syria, because we fear that such an intervention could threaten to destabilize the region further," he said. Not least, Burger warned, Turkey's action could lead to a new refugee problem there.
German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer visited Kurdish Peshmerga fighters in Iraq in August 2019Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Hamed
Destabilization at home and abroad
That fear was just one among many dangers raised by several observers this week, including worries about the estimated 12,000 Islamic State fighters in Kurdish prisons in the region (around 100 are thought to be from Germany). Should they escape, the terrorist militia that had been thought defeated could be reinvigorated.
And then there are worries about unrest in Germany, which is home to upwards of two million people of Kurdish and/or Turkish heritage. Hundreds of Germany's Kurdish community already took to the streets of Berlin on Tuesday in protest, and further demos are planned this week, where banners showing the banned organizations like the PKK are likely to be shown.
Who's fighting in the Syria conflict?
Syria's civil war erupted out of the Arab Spring protests that swept much of the Middle East and North Africa in 2011. The conflict has since drawn in multiple warring factions from around the world.
Image: Atta Kenare/AFP/Getty Images
War with no end
Syria has been engulfed in a devastating civil war since 2011 after Syrian President Bashar Assad lost control over large parts of the country to multiple revolutionary groups. The conflict has since drawn in foreign powers and brought misery and death to Syrians.
Image: picture alliance/abaca/A. Al-Bushy
The dictator
Syria's army, officially known as the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), is loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and is fighting to restore the president's rule over the entire country. The SAA has been fighting alongside a number of pro-Assad militias such as the National Defense Force and has cooperated with military advisors from Russia and Iran, which back Assad.
Turkey, which is also part of the US-led coalition against IS, has actively supported rebels opposed to Assad. It has a tense relationship with its American allies over US cooperation with Kurdish fighters, who Ankara says are linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) fighting in Turkey. Turkey has launched multiple military offensives targeting Kurdish militias.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/L. Pitarakis
The eastern guardian
The Kremlin has proven to be a powerful friend to Assad. Russian air power and ground troops officially joined the fight in September 2015 after years of supplying the Syrian army. Moscow has come under fire from the international community for the high number of civilian casualties during its airstrikes. However, Russia's intervention turned the tide in war in favor of Assad.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Tass/M. Metzel
The western allies
A US-led coalition of more than 50 countries, including Germany, began targeting IS and other terrorist targets with airstrikes in late 2014. The anti-IS coalition has dealt major setbacks to the militant group. The US has more than a thousand special forces in the country backing the Syrian Democratic Forces.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/A.Brandon
The rebels
The Free Syrian Army grew out of protests against the Assad regime that eventually turned violent. Along with other non-jihadist rebel groups, it seeks the ouster of President Assad and democratic elections. After suffering a number of defeats, many of its members defected to hardline militant groups. It garnered some support from the US and Turkey, but its strength has been greatly diminished.
Image: Reuters
The resistance
Fighting between Syrian Kurds and Islamists has become its own conflict. The US-led coalition against the "Islamic State" has backed the Syrian Democratic Forces, an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias. The Kurdish YPG militia is the main component of the SDF. The Kurds have had a tacit understanding with Assad.
Image: Getty Images/A. Sik
The new jihadists
"Islamic State" (IS) took advantage of regional chaos to capture vast swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria in 2014. Seeking to establish its own "caliphate," IS has become infamous for its fundamentalist brand of Islam and its mass atrocities. IS is on the brink of defeat after the US and Russia led separate military campaigns against the militant group.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo
The old jihadists
IS is not the only terrorist group that has ravaged Syria. A number of jihadist militant groups are fighting in the conflict, warring against various rebel factions and the Assad regime. One of the main jihadist factions is Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, which controls most of Idlib province and has ties with al-Qaeda.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Nusra Front on Twitter
The Persian shadow
Iran has supported Syria, its only Arab ally, for decades. Eager to maintain its ally, Tehran has provided Damascus with strategic assistance, military training and ground troops when the conflict emerged in 2011. The Iran-backed Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah also supports the Assad regime, fighting alongside Iranian forces and paramilitary groups in the country.
Image: Atta Kenare/AFP/Getty Images
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Mehmet Tanriverdi, deputy chairman for the largest Kurdish Community organization in Germany, the KGD, also warned of Ankara's plans for "ethnic cleansing" in the Kurdish region, as well as the forcible alteration of the demographics by resettling Arab migrants from Syria there.
In the face of all these dangers at home and abroad, Tanriverdi thinks Germany's verbal condemnations and concerns don't really hold much weight.
"Germany must act," he told DW. "The government cannot just put its hands in its lap, as it has till now, and say: the killing in the Syrian civil war has nothing to do with us."
Sending stronger signals
Chancellor Angela Merkel has many ways to put real pressure on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Tanriverdi added.
"This war can be prevented," he said. "If you say to him: 'Mr. Erdogan, we will raise questions about Turkey's membership in NATO,' then he would think twice about taking another step."
Tanriverdi had a few more ideas about how Germany could send "stronger signals" to Ankara. "Germany could for example ban all arms exports to Turkey," he said. "That wouldn't be difficult. Or they could say: 'we will suspend the refugee deal with Turkey, then we wouldn't need to pump more billions into Turkey'."
Another possibility could be economic sanctions: two weeks ago, German carmaker Volkswagen announced that it would build a new electric car factory in western Turkey — a deal which the regional government of Lower Saxony is directly involved in. "They could have an influence and say: we're not building that factory," he said.
As it stands though, the German government is maintaining its line: offering limited military support to both sides while criticizing Turkey and banning the Kurdish political organization, the PKK, at home.
