This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/15/uk-suspends-arms-exports-turkey-prevent-use-syria
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| UK suspends arms exports to Turkey to prevent use in Syria | UK suspends arms exports to Turkey to prevent use in Syria |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| The UK is suspending the granting of arms export licences to Turkey for weapons that might be used during military operations in Syria, the foreign secretary has said. | The UK is suspending the granting of arms export licences to Turkey for weapons that might be used during military operations in Syria, the foreign secretary has said. |
| Dominic Raab also condemned Turkey’s invasion of Syria, saying it risked worsening the humanitarian crisis and undermined the international effort to focus on defeating Islamic State terrorism. “This is not the action we expected from an ally. It is reckless. It is counterproductive and plays straight into the hands of Russia, and indeed the Assad regime,” he told MPs. | Dominic Raab also condemned Turkey’s invasion of Syria, saying it risked worsening the humanitarian crisis and undermined the international effort to focus on defeating Islamic State terrorism. “This is not the action we expected from an ally. It is reckless. It is counterproductive and plays straight into the hands of Russia, and indeed the Assad regime,” he told MPs. |
| Turkish troops entered north-east Syria last week in an offensive against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which Ankara has long maintained is an offshoot of the militant Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK). The assault was triggered by Donald Trump’s announcement that US troops would withdraw from the Kurdish-held area. | Turkish troops entered north-east Syria last week in an offensive against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which Ankara has long maintained is an offshoot of the militant Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK). The assault was triggered by Donald Trump’s announcement that US troops would withdraw from the Kurdish-held area. |
| The UK has supplied £1.1bn of arms to Turkey since 2014 and it is not clear how UK trade officials will be able to determine if the arms could be used in Syria. | The UK has supplied £1.1bn of arms to Turkey since 2014 and it is not clear how UK trade officials will be able to determine if the arms could be used in Syria. |
| Until Turkey launched its offensive there on 9 October, the region was controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which comprises militia groups representing a range of ethnicities, though its backbone is Kurdish. | Until Turkey launched its offensive there on 9 October, the region was controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which comprises militia groups representing a range of ethnicities, though its backbone is Kurdish. |
| Since the Turkish incursion, the SDF has lost much of its territory and appears to be losing its grip on key cities. On 13 October, Kurdish leaders agreed to allow Syrian regime forces to enter some cities to protect them from being captured by Turkey and its allies. The deal effectively hands over control of huge swathes of the region to Damascus. | Since the Turkish incursion, the SDF has lost much of its territory and appears to be losing its grip on key cities. On 13 October, Kurdish leaders agreed to allow Syrian regime forces to enter some cities to protect them from being captured by Turkey and its allies. The deal effectively hands over control of huge swathes of the region to Damascus. |
| That leaves north-eastern Syria divided between Syrian regime forces, Syrian opposition militia and their Turkish allies, and areas still held by the SDF – for now. | That leaves north-eastern Syria divided between Syrian regime forces, Syrian opposition militia and their Turkish allies, and areas still held by the SDF – for now. |
| Before the SDF was formed in 2015, the Kurds had created their own militias who mobilised during the Syrian civil war to defend Kurdish cities and villages and carve out what they hoped would eventually at least become a semi-autonomous province. | Before the SDF was formed in 2015, the Kurds had created their own militias who mobilised during the Syrian civil war to defend Kurdish cities and villages and carve out what they hoped would eventually at least become a semi-autonomous province. |
| In late 2014, the Kurds were struggling to fend off an Islamic State siege of Kobane, a major city under their control. With US support, including arms and airstrikes, the Kurds managed to beat back Isis and went on to win a string of victories against the radical militant group. Along the way the fighters absorbed non-Kurdish groups, changed their name to the SDF and grew to include 60,000 soldiers. | |
| For years, Turkey has watched the growing ties between the US and SDF with alarm. Significant numbers of the Kurds in the SDF were also members of the People’s Protection Units (YPG), an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) that has fought an insurgency against the Turkish state for more than 35 years in which as many as 40,000 people have died. The PKK initially called for independence and now demands greater autonomy for Kurds inside Turkey. | For years, Turkey has watched the growing ties between the US and SDF with alarm. Significant numbers of the Kurds in the SDF were also members of the People’s Protection Units (YPG), an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) that has fought an insurgency against the Turkish state for more than 35 years in which as many as 40,000 people have died. The PKK initially called for independence and now demands greater autonomy for Kurds inside Turkey. |
| Turkey claims the PKK has continued to wage war on the Turkish state, even as it has assisted in the fight against Isis. The PKK is listed as a terrorist group by Turkey, the US, the UK, Nato and others and this has proved awkward for the US and its allies, who have chosen to downplay the SDF’s links to the PKK, preferring to focus on their shared objective of defeating Isis. | Turkey claims the PKK has continued to wage war on the Turkish state, even as it has assisted in the fight against Isis. The PKK is listed as a terrorist group by Turkey, the US, the UK, Nato and others and this has proved awkward for the US and its allies, who have chosen to downplay the SDF’s links to the PKK, preferring to focus on their shared objective of defeating Isis. |
| Turkey aims firstly to push the SDF away from its border, creating a 20-mile (32km) buffer zone that would have been jointly patrolled by Turkish and US troops until Trump’s recent announcement that American soldiers would withdraw from the region. | Turkey aims firstly to push the SDF away from its border, creating a 20-mile (32km) buffer zone that would have been jointly patrolled by Turkish and US troops until Trump’s recent announcement that American soldiers would withdraw from the region. |
| Erdoğan has also said he would seek to relocate more than 1 million Syrian refugees in this “safe zone”, both removing them from his country (where their presence has started to create a backlash) and complicating the demographic mix in what he fears could become an autonomous Kurdish state on his border. | Erdoğan has also said he would seek to relocate more than 1 million Syrian refugees in this “safe zone”, both removing them from his country (where their presence has started to create a backlash) and complicating the demographic mix in what he fears could become an autonomous Kurdish state on his border. |
| Nearly 11,000 Isis fighters, including almost 2,000 foreigners, and tens of thousands of their wives and children, are being held in detention camps and hastily fortified prisons across north-eastern Syria. | Nearly 11,000 Isis fighters, including almost 2,000 foreigners, and tens of thousands of their wives and children, are being held in detention camps and hastily fortified prisons across north-eastern Syria. |
| SDF leaders have warned they cannot guarantee the security of these prisoners if they are forced to redeploy their forces to the frontlines of a war against Turkey. They also fear Isis could use the chaos of war to mount attacks to free their fighters or reclaim territory. | SDF leaders have warned they cannot guarantee the security of these prisoners if they are forced to redeploy their forces to the frontlines of a war against Turkey. They also fear Isis could use the chaos of war to mount attacks to free their fighters or reclaim territory. |
| On 11 October, it was reported that at least five detained Isis fighters had escaped a prison in the region. Two days later, 750 foreign women affiliated to Isis and their children managed to break out of a secure annex in the Ain Issa camp for displaced people, according to SDF officials. | On 11 October, it was reported that at least five detained Isis fighters had escaped a prison in the region. Two days later, 750 foreign women affiliated to Isis and their children managed to break out of a secure annex in the Ain Issa camp for displaced people, according to SDF officials. |
| It is unclear which detention sites the SDF still controls and the status of the prisoners inside. | It is unclear which detention sites the SDF still controls and the status of the prisoners inside. |
| Michael Safi | Michael Safi |
| Raab also said the UK would consider possible economic sanctions against Turkey, but said the balance of opinion within the EU at this stage was that it was doubtful whether they would achieve the goal of ending the Turkish offensive. He ruled out a no-fly zone in northern Syria as impractical. | Raab also said the UK would consider possible economic sanctions against Turkey, but said the balance of opinion within the EU at this stage was that it was doubtful whether they would achieve the goal of ending the Turkish offensive. He ruled out a no-fly zone in northern Syria as impractical. |
| Trump’s announcement just over a week ago that he was withdrawing US troops has been widely viewed as a historic foreign policy blunder. | Trump’s announcement just over a week ago that he was withdrawing US troops has been widely viewed as a historic foreign policy blunder. |
| Raab implicitly criticised Trump, saying the withdrawal had sent the wrong message to the US’s allies and destabilised broader efforts to fight Isis. | Raab implicitly criticised Trump, saying the withdrawal had sent the wrong message to the US’s allies and destabilised broader efforts to fight Isis. |
| A threat by the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, to flood Europe with refugees was totally unacceptable and “not the kind of language we expect from a Nato ally”, Raab added. | A threat by the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, to flood Europe with refugees was totally unacceptable and “not the kind of language we expect from a Nato ally”, Raab added. |
| Raab also said the UK was looking to give safe passage back to the UK for unaccompanied British children and orphans of Isis fighters, but conceded the British policy of seeking to prosecute foreign fighters in the region had been made more difficult by the arrival of Syrian regime forces. | Raab also said the UK was looking to give safe passage back to the UK for unaccompanied British children and orphans of Isis fighters, but conceded the British policy of seeking to prosecute foreign fighters in the region had been made more difficult by the arrival of Syrian regime forces. |
| The government was criticised by Labour and Scottish National party MPs for initially resisting a push at the EU foreign affairs council on Monday to condemn the Turkish offensive. He countered that the British aim had been to produce a balanced EU statement that acknowledged Turkish security concerns about the presence of Kurds belonging to the PKK – which Turkey, the UK, the US and others consider a terrorist group – in Kurdish-administered north-east Syria. | The government was criticised by Labour and Scottish National party MPs for initially resisting a push at the EU foreign affairs council on Monday to condemn the Turkish offensive. He countered that the British aim had been to produce a balanced EU statement that acknowledged Turkish security concerns about the presence of Kurds belonging to the PKK – which Turkey, the UK, the US and others consider a terrorist group – in Kurdish-administered north-east Syria. |
| He also warned against “doing anything that might drive Turkey further into the arms of Russia and President Putin”. | He also warned against “doing anything that might drive Turkey further into the arms of Russia and President Putin”. |
| The British stance at the EU has been seen by some as a glimpse of a post-Brexit British foreign policy in which the search for markets, and trade deals, will need to be put ahead of solidarity with any European human rights foreign policy. | The British stance at the EU has been seen by some as a glimpse of a post-Brexit British foreign policy in which the search for markets, and trade deals, will need to be put ahead of solidarity with any European human rights foreign policy. |
| The exchanges in parliament on Tuesday were remarkable for the degree of Conservative backbench criticism of Trump. Tom Tugenhadt, the chair of the foreign affairs select committee, asked Raab if he could think of any decision by an ally that “has so exposed our troops in combat, weakened our alliances in the region, undermined our essential security partnership in Nato and empowered our enemies in Russia and Iran”. | The exchanges in parliament on Tuesday were remarkable for the degree of Conservative backbench criticism of Trump. Tom Tugenhadt, the chair of the foreign affairs select committee, asked Raab if he could think of any decision by an ally that “has so exposed our troops in combat, weakened our alliances in the region, undermined our essential security partnership in Nato and empowered our enemies in Russia and Iran”. |
| The former defence minister Tobias Ellwood said Trump’s action had triggered a tragic chain of events that could change the ethnic makeup of Syria and give Russia and Iran ever greater leverage. Direct conflict between Russia and Turkey was coming ever closer, he warned. | The former defence minister Tobias Ellwood said Trump’s action had triggered a tragic chain of events that could change the ethnic makeup of Syria and give Russia and Iran ever greater leverage. Direct conflict between Russia and Turkey was coming ever closer, he warned. |
| The former cabinet minister David Davis described the episode as a geo-strategic disaster. | The former cabinet minister David Davis described the episode as a geo-strategic disaster. |
| Earlier Jeremy Hunt, the former foreign secretary, said Trump had made a profound strategic mistake by abandoning the Kurds. | Earlier Jeremy Hunt, the former foreign secretary, said Trump had made a profound strategic mistake by abandoning the Kurds. |
| “We are probably looking at an end game where Assad has much more territory, Russia has another vassal state and the west’s role – particularly America’s – is dramatically reduced,” he said. | “We are probably looking at an end game where Assad has much more territory, Russia has another vassal state and the west’s role – particularly America’s – is dramatically reduced,” he said. |
| Arms trade campaigners welcomed the British move, and said the UK had “clearly been shamed” into action after other European countries made a similar decision. | Arms trade campaigners welcomed the British move, and said the UK had “clearly been shamed” into action after other European countries made a similar decision. |
| Andrew Smith from the Campaign Against Arms Trade said any suspension could not only be limited to future arms sales and must also affect the hundreds of millions of pounds worth of arms that have been licensed over recent years. | Andrew Smith from the Campaign Against Arms Trade said any suspension could not only be limited to future arms sales and must also affect the hundreds of millions of pounds worth of arms that have been licensed over recent years. |
| “This should also mark a turning point in UK foreign policy in Turkey,” Smith said. “In 2018 Turkish forces bombed Afrin and it made no difference to arms sales or military collaboration. If this move is to be more than symbolic then there can be no return to business as usual. It’s time that the rights of Kurdish people were finally put ahead of arms company profits.” | “This should also mark a turning point in UK foreign policy in Turkey,” Smith said. “In 2018 Turkish forces bombed Afrin and it made no difference to arms sales or military collaboration. If this move is to be more than symbolic then there can be no return to business as usual. It’s time that the rights of Kurdish people were finally put ahead of arms company profits.” |
| Turkey | Turkey |
| Syria | Syria |
| Arms trade | Arms trade |
| Middle East and North Africa | Middle East and North Africa |
| Kurds | Kurds |
| Dominic Raab | Dominic Raab |
| US foreign policy | US foreign policy |
| news | news |
| Share on Facebook | Share on Facebook |
| Share on Twitter | Share on Twitter |
| Share via Email | Share via Email |
| Share on LinkedIn | Share on LinkedIn |
| Share on Pinterest | Share on Pinterest |
| Share on WhatsApp | Share on WhatsApp |
| Share on Messenger | Share on Messenger |
| Reuse this content | Reuse this content |