​Erdogan’s historic summit with Trump---if it takes place

TURKEY - In Brief 22 Sep 2019 by Atilla Yesilada

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I’ve shirked my responsibility of contributing to our Weekly Tracker on Sunday, because the marque event of the week, i.e. Trump-Erdogan summit had not been arranged.To add some background, before he flew to New York City, Erdogan warned all stakeholders in Syria that the Turkish side has completed all preparations for a military incursion into North East Syria, i.e. the domain of PKK-affiliated Syrian Kurdish entity YPG-PYD. Pentagon is a steadfast ally of YPG-PYD, while Turkey views it as an extension of PKK. On Sunday night, Erdogan held a phone conversation with President Trump, the contents of which had not been released to the media. Later he received Republican Senator Mr. Lindsey Graham, who commented afterwards that “We’re trying to get them back in the F-35 program,” Graham, a close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, said in New York, according to a video posted on Twitter and reports in Turkish media. -- In the video, Graham said he and Erdogan discussed a possible free trade agreement. “Turkey is a very important ally, not just when it comes to Syria but for the whole region,” he told reporters.(link here) The unscheduled phone call to Trump and the sudden Graham visit to Erdogan suggests to methat a face-to-face with Trump is yet to be arranged. Additionally, I find phone calls an unproductive means of communication, as countless such conversations between Erdogan and Trump or Putin never yielded any results. Erdogan needs to convince Trump that Turkey’s vision of the safe zone in North East Syria is just and not against American interests. A unilateral military campaign will most likely succeed in terms of securing control of the safe zone, but it is li...