Brussels wants to use Ankara's influence to guarantee unity in Syria, as well as to avoid a new confrontation in the northern part of the country.
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00:00All roads leading to Syria pass through Ankara.
00:09Turkey, one of the winners of regime change in Syria,
00:12has indirect military presence in the country
00:15and supported the rebels who seized power.
00:18This gives Ankara good access to Syria's new leaders
00:21as well as international recognition as a major player in the country's affairs.
00:26From US Secretary of State Antony Blinken
00:28to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen,
00:31Western leaders are visiting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
00:34to discuss latest developments in Syria.
00:40From the perspective of the EU and President von der Leyen,
00:44what choice do you have?
00:46The reality is that today Turkey is the main outside power broker inside Syria
00:54and if you want to have any influence on events there,
00:58you have to work through Turkey.
01:01On Monday, a senior EU diplomat already made the first contact
01:04with the provisional government set up in Syria by HDS.
01:09But for Brussels, it is important to use Ankara's influence
01:12to facilitate a smooth transition that guarantees the unity of the country
01:16and the respect of all minorities.
01:19If you listen to Turkey, they are ready to play a big role.
01:25They are in favour of tolerance, as we are, as Europeans, of course.
01:30They are in favour of territorial integrity, as we are.
01:33But in the case of Turkey, remember that they have lots of troops
01:38in the northern part of Syria.
01:40So how this will unfold, we don't know yet.
01:43And also, in Syria we have the remnants of Islamic State,
01:47so security there is very important.
01:51But in the north of Syria, there is not only a Turkish buffer zone
01:54controlled by the Syrian National Army.
01:57There is also an important area under Kurdish control supported by the US.
02:02And Ursula von der Leyen will try to avoid a new confrontation.
02:06She will not want Turkey and particularly the Turkish-aligned rebel militias
02:14inside Syria to aggressively pursue military confrontation
02:19with the Kurdish militias, which is another way of saying
02:23she will want Turkey to help create a unified Syrian country
02:31and not start another civil war to pursue in another theatre
02:37the ongoing Turkish military operation against Kurdish rebels
02:43both inside Turkey, inside Iraq, and today occasionally also inside Syria.
02:50Although the amount was considered as not enough by Ankara,
02:53Turkey has received some financial assistance from the EU
02:56to host 3.5 million Syrian refugees.
02:59Now Ankara wants to send them back, and this requires a pacified territory.