Turkish Domestic Determinants And Ankara’s Military Operations In Syria: Kurdish Threat And Expansionist Ambitions

Abstract

The Syrian conflict became one of the most important directions of Turkey's regional security policy, playing a key role in the redefinition of Ankara's security policy and the expansion of Ankara's power projection area and tools. The military operation "Euphrates Shield" in August 2016 thus became the first attempt at the massive use of the military in regional policy after 1974, which justified the vitality of aggressive initiatives among the ambitious Turkish elite and had a unique domino effect. The purpose of the article is to highlight the domestic factors that supported and conditioned Turkish military operations in Syria, as well as the main objectives pursued. The article contains a case study, the focus of which is Turkey's military operations on Syrian territory and the military-political goals pursued by them. Furthermore, the Turkish domestic factors and transformations that enabled and aided in the implementation and expansion of these military operations are revealed.