ISTANBUL

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan warned that Israel’s approach to its neighbors poses a significant threat.

In an interview with Britain’s Financial Times published Thursday, Fidan said of Israel’s recent attacks on southern Syria: “The ongoing attacks on the land and new troop movements are a clear provocation.”

“Israel sees every Arab and Muslim country as a threat, and it’s extremely dangerous. The strategy of keeping all its border states weak is untenable,” he underlined.

Fidan emphasized that the PKK/YPG-led SDF — a terrorist group active in Syria — is “the sworn enemy” of Türkiye, adding: “We cannot let them continue.”

Türkiye wants to give the new Damascus administration a chance to address the terrorist PKK/YPG issue, he said.

If needed, he said, Türkiye could take over the camps and prisons in northeastern Syria currently under PKK/YPG control, where ISIS (Daesh) terrorists and their relatives are being held.

“It’s a question of intelligence and air power,” he said. “So if we, as neighbours of Syria, can come up with our own regional platform, we can still fight against Isis (Daesh) even if the US decides to pull out,” he added.

In its 40-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK — listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US, and EU — has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, infants, and the elderly. The PKK/YPG is the PKK’s Syrian branch.

Since the fall of the Assad regime last December, Türkiye has repeatedly called on the PKK/YPG to dissolve or face a potential military operation.

Syria’s new rulers have also said there is no place for an independent military force in the country.

Trump’s actions, European security architecture

Fidan also addressed US President Donald Trump’s recent actions, which have left many Western leaders shaken, suggesting that they serve as “a wake-up call for us to unite and design our own centre of gravity.”

He added that Türkiye would want to be part of any new European security architecture if NATO were to unravel. Türkiye has been a member of the NATO alliance for over 70 years, and boasts its second-largest army.

“The genie is out of the bottle and there is no way to put it back,” Fidan said of European security.

“Even if President Trump decides not to withdraw from Europe at this time, it is possible that in the future someone with similar views and political ideas might consider reducing America’s contributions to European security.”