Turkey, Iran fighting over Syria, but verbally only

Mustafa Kamel

A media crisis is raging on between Turkey and Iran, against the background of Turkish military interference in northern Syria and provocative remarks by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The media crisis between the two countries finds its roots in 2012, when Iranian media described Erdogan as a “conspirator” against Syria.

Erdogan, for his part, accused Iran of messing with Syria’s security and interfering in the country for sectarian reasons.

However, the fact is that both countries back a cavalcade of terrorist groups and militias in Syria.

Avoiding direct confrontation

Iranian-Turkish rivalries are manifesting themselves strongly on the Syrian stage.

Nevertheless, this did not prevent the chief of staff of the Iranian army Mohammad Bagheri from visiting Ankara in August 2017, in the first such visit by such a high-ranking military official from Iran to Turkey since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.

Oddly enough, the visit came only months after Turkish troops entered northern Syria. It gave insights into the abilities of both Tehran and Ankara to cooperate, rather than collide, despite their own differences.

The fact is that Turkey’s and Iran’s military presence in Syria puts them on a collision course. However, both countries apparently inherently agree on the need for avoiding confrontation.

Both countries can only focus on their shared interests amid the current turbulent regional conditions.

Ankara interfered militarily in Syria in 2017 and 2018 with the ostensible aim of cracking down on the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Nonetheless, its real objectives were to prevent the Kurds from strengthening their presence in northern Syria, just on the Turkish border.

Media war

Turkey’s interference in Syria was met with an angry campaign by media close to the Iranian regime. The Iranian media accused Erdogan of conspiring against the Syrian government.

In 2015, Erdogan stepped up his anti-Iran rhetoric by accusing it of abetting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for sectarian reasons.

This escalation did not, however, prevent Turkey from welcoming the deal Iran hammered out with Western powers on its nuclear file.