The Kurdish Struggle

Moscow and Ankara are most pleased by their new deal on northern Syria; the rest of the area's actors aren't.

Washington and Ankara's deal to temporarily halt the fighting in northeastern Syria provides more questions than answers, suggesting the truce is unlikely to endure.

With Washington's hasty retreat from northern Syria upending the regional balance, Turkish and Syrian forces could soon come to blows.

Ankara has long sought to establish a buffer zone to protect Turkey from the effects of the Syrian civil war, but as the Turkish government finally gets closer to getting what it wants, its aspirations will crash into geopolitical reality.

The U.S. Congress and the European Union are threatening to punish Ankara for its military operation against the Kurds in northeastern Syria. It's a price Turkey appears willing to pay.

Ankara wants to accomplish its objectives before Kurdish-led forces can shore up their resistance and to minimize the international backlash that's already building.

In its pursuit of Syria's Kurds, Ankara may bypass Washington's objections at the risk of paying a heavy economic price.

The partial U.S. withdrawal from northern Syria offers Turkey the chance to finally move against its Kurdish foe, but Ankara's path will be fraught with danger.

The White House is intent on bringing U.S. troops home from Syria, but an attack on American soldiers in Manbij shows that a swift withdrawal is easier said than done.

The United States has indicated a desire to protect its YPG allies as the U.S. military prepares to pull out of Syria. For Turkey, that plan is unacceptable.