Ground plan urged by Turkey to end war
Turkish officials say they’re in talks with allies about proposal
Turkey pushes for ground operations in Syria with the U.S. as a coalition dominated by Kurdish fighters pushes through insurgent lines.
ISTANBUL — Turkey amplified the big-power tensions over the increasingly chaotic war in Syria on Tuesday, saying it is in discussions with allies, including the United States, over collaborating on a military ground operation into northern Syrian territory.
A Turkish official who spoke to reporters in Istanbul about the Syrian situation said that it was now impossible to halt the war without a ground operation in northern Syria, and that the Turks would not undertake such an operation on their own.
“We are asking coalition partners that there should be a ground operation,” said the official, who was authorized to speak on the condition that he not be identified by name. “We are discussing this with allies.”
While it was unclear how far the discussions have progressed, it appeared unlikely that a ground operation would be mounted. Saudi Arabia has said it would be willing to commit troops, but the United States has repeatedly indicated that it would not.
A ground operation could put U.S. and Russian forces at risk of a direct military confrontation for the first time in the nearly five-year Syria war, even as both Russia and the United States say they are working toward the “cessation of hostilities” called for in a diplomatic agreement reached last week in Munich.
Syrian forces backed by Russian airstrikes have achieved some of their biggest gains in the conflict in recent days, driving insurgents out of their enclaves in northern Syria and advancing in some places to within 15 miles of the Turkish border.
The Syrian advances have been exploited by Kurdish militants in northern Syria to expand their territory, upsetting the Turkish authorities, who see an immediate threat from the Kurds, their long- time adversaries.
The chaos on the battlefield was punctuated Monday by airstrikes that hit four hospitals and a school harboring civilians in rebel-held territory, which the United Nations said had left 50 people dead including children. None of the combatants have taken responsibility for the airstrikes, but the targets were in areas under increased attack by Syrian and Russian forces.
The U.N. special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, was in Damascus on Tuesday trying to complete arrangements for aid convoys to reach besieged areas in the country, an important element of the Munich agreement.
Speaking in Damascus alongside the Syrian foreign minister, Walid alMoallem, de Mistura said the convoys would try to deliver aid Wednesday.
“It is clear it is the duty of the government of Syria to want to reach every Syrian person, wherever they are, and allow the U.N. to bring humanitarian aid, particularly now, after so long time,” de Mistura said. “Tomorrow we test this.”