Erdogan relocating mercenaries to conflict zones to regain Ottoman-era influence

Ali Rajab

Turkey plans to relocate a large number of Syrian mercenaries to the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region in the south Caucasus, in coordination with the government of Azerbaijan, some rights groups said.

This move is apparently an attempt by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to regain Ottoman influence over the region, the groups added.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Turkish government would likely keep the Syrian mercenaries it had transferred to the region there, even after the end of the military showdown with Armenia which claims that the region belongs to it.

Turkey says the mercenaries’ roots go back to the region. It adds that these mercenaries are native Turkmen loyal to Turkey.

The observatory also reported the return of the remains of some pro-Turkey fighters to Syria.

The remains belong to around 30 fighters who were killed during previous battles between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the observatory said.

It noted that around 293 pro-Turkey fighters had been killed in the same battles. Turkey had transferred a total of 2,580 mercenaries to Nagorno-Karabakh to fight against Armenia alongside with Azerbaijan.

Integration

Integrating mercenaries into conflict zones is a well-known Turkish policy. Turkey is doing the same in northern Syria where it makes demographic changes that serve its interests only.

The Turkish military relocates Turkmen to the area as well as the families of extremists and forces Kurds out of it.

Turkey also worked to relocate Syrians with Turkish origins to Libya, especially in the northern city of Misrata.