Billedet: Franske soldater i Afghanistan. Wikipedia Commonse

En delegation fra den kurdiske region Rojava i Nord-Syrien besøgte torsdag Emmanuel Macron, som sagde han ville sende franske specialstyrker, for at stå sammen med amerikanerne og kurderne mod tyrkisk aggression.

Turkey says France could become ‘target’ for backing Syria Kurds

Det er en kurdisk kilde som siger dette til Le Parisien og oplysningen skal nok tages med et gran salt. Der er ikke gjort nogen formel vedtagelse eller kommet nogen officiel erklæring fra Elysee-palasset.

Men bare det at Macron modtog udsendinge fra Rojava er nok til at Erdogan ser rødt. Erdogan gik langt i at true Frankrig fredag:

Turkey said on Friday that a French pledge to help stabilize a region of northern Syria controlled by Kurdish-dominated forces amounted to support for terrorism and could make France a “target of Turkey”.

Erdogan sagde, at han og Macron havde en ophedet telefonsamtale sidste uge.

President Tayyip Erdogan said France had taken a “completely wrong approach” on Syria, adding that he exchanged heated words with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, last week.

Ankara har tillagt sig en retorik som passer dårligt med at Frankrig og Tyrkiet er NATO-allierede:

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said the French stance was setting Paris on a collision course with Ankara.

“Those who enter into cooperation and solidarity with terror groups against Turkey … will, like the terrorists, become a target of Turkey,” Bozdag, who is also the Turkish government spokesman, wrote on Twitter. “We hope France does not take such an irrational step.”

Erdogan talte også med Trump fredag, og spørgsmålet er, hvordan den samtale forløb. Erdogan ønsker frie hænder i Syrien, og Trump har signaliseret at USA bør trække sig ud. Hvis det skulle ske vil Erdogan, Putin og Teheran have vundet.

Det er vanskeligt at forestille sig at Trumps nye sikkerhedsteam vil gå med til sådan noget.

Macron kom med vage løfter til de kurdiske delegerede:

A PYD member in Paris said Macron had promised at Thursday’s meeting with the SDF to send more troops to northern Syria, provide humanitarian assistance and push a diplomatic solution.

The French presidency did not confirm that Macron had pledged more troops, but the presidential source said France could bolster its military intervention in Syria “within the existing framework” of the U.S.-led coalition.

The presidency also said Macron was offering to mediate between Turkey and the SDF – a suggestion Erdogan dismissed.

Men bare det at mødet fandt sted, er nok for Erdogan. Mægling vil han ikke høre tale om.

“Do not engage in things beyond you, we do not need a mediator,” he said, responding to the French offer in remarks to members of his ruling AK Party in Ankara. “Who are you to speak of mediation between Turkey and a terrorist organization?”

Erdogan kom med en konkret trussel mod Frankrig: Forvent ikke hjælp næste gang I bliver oversvømmet af flygtninge. Disse flygtninge vil være et resultat af jeres egne politiske valg, advarede Erdogan.

Accusing Paris of appeasing terrorism, he said Macron would be held accountable for his policy by his own people.

“We hope France doesn’t come to us for help when the terrorists running from Syria and Iraq fill their country after being encouraged by their policy,” he said.

Ankara har advaret allierede soldater mod at stille sig i vejen for fremrykkende tyrkiske styrker.

Ankara, meanwhile, has said it expects its allies to move their troops out of the way of a Turkish advance.

“We have no intention to harm soldiers of allied nations, but we cannot allow terrorists to roam freely (in northern Syria),” Erdogan said.

Hvis Trump først giver efter for Erdogans krav, vil han svække sin evne til afskrækning.

En amerikansk og en britisk soldat blev dræbt af en vejbombe i Syrien natten til fredag. Den første dødelige hændelse i det nye år.