Turkey, Syria and the Kurds
The Briefing Room
BBC
4.8 • 731 Ratings
🗓️ 17 October 2019
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Donald Trump’s recent announcement that he was withdrawing the remaining US troops in northern Syria sent shockwaves across the security establishment, and caught allies in the region off guard.
Turkey moved swiftly to launch an offensive against Kurdish forces across the border. What does President Erdogan want to achieve? And where does this leave the political map of the region and the fight against the Islamic State group?
David Aaronovitch speaks to guests about the phone call that started it off and what could happen next.
GUESTS
Eric Schmitt - senior writer covering terrorism and national security issues for The New York Times and co-author of Counterstrike Dr Amanda Sloat - senior fellow at The Brookings Institution and former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Southern Europe and Eastern Mediterranean Affairs at the State Department Charles Lister - senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and author of The Syrian Jihad: Al Qaeda, the Islamic State and the Evolution of an Insurgency Lina Khatib - Head of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House Seth Frantzman - Middle East affairs analyst for the Jerusalem Post and the author of After Isis: America, Iran and the struggle for the Middle East (September 2019).
Producer: Serena Tarling Editor: Jasper Corbett
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:06.7 | Welcome to the briefing room with me, David Oronovich. |
| 0:09.8 | In this crepuscular space, we're joined by the world's leading experts, |
| 0:13.6 | who, in the next half hour, can tell us everything we might want to know about a burning issue of the day. |
| 0:19.2 | Today, we're looking at the impact of Donald Trump's sudden decision |
| 0:22.3 | to withdraw US troops from northern Syria |
| 0:24.9 | and how that decision has changed the region. |
| 0:28.3 | And if you enjoy this podcast, you might like some of our other episodes, |
| 0:31.9 | including ones on vaping, meat-eating in the environment, |
| 0:35.3 | and the British Constitution. |
| 0:36.9 | You can find them all on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:47.4 | The White House, Washington, October 9th, 2019. |
| 0:53.1 | Eight days ago, the President of the United States sent the President of Turkey, |
| 0:57.3 | Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a letter. |
| 0:59.8 | Dear Mr. President, let's work out a good deal. |
| 1:03.4 | You don't want to be responsible for slaughtering thousands of people, |
| 1:07.1 | and I don't want to be responsible for destroying the Turkish economy. |
| 1:10.8 | And I will. |
| 1:12.3 | President Trump was writing in the aftermath of Turkish forces and Turkish-backed militias |
| 1:17.2 | moving in to fill the vacuum created by his sudden withdrawal of US troops from the Turkish-Syrian border. |
| 1:24.5 | He wanted Mr. Erdogan to take it easy. |
| 1:31.3 | Don't be a tough guy. Don't be a fool. I will call you later. Sincerely, Donald J. Trump. |
... |
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