This archive report was first published on 24 October 2019.
Published on October 24, 2019, a day of sharp discord marked the first day of a two-day meeting of NATO ministers in Brussels. The issue at hand was Turkey's incursion against Kurdish fighters in Syria, which has left the 29-member alliance isolated.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described the discussions as "frank and open," a euphemism for sharp discord. He noted that the alliance has seen disagreements before, but has endured.
Stoltenberg stressed that the ministers agreed on the need to maintain unity in the fight against ISIS, referring to the Islamic State group being fought in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere by a broad international coalition.
Germany presented an idea of deploying international troops to create a security zone in northeast Syria, but the proposal was met with tepid support from allies due to the situation on the ground and the need for a UN mandate.
The top commander of Syria's Kurdish force, Mazloum Abdi, welcomed the proposal, saying, "We demand and agree to this."
However, the NATO ministers did not directly endorse the German plan, instead stressing their support for finding a political solution in northern Syria.
US Defense Secretary Mark Esper bluntly stated that Turkey was "heading in the wrong direction" and that its incursion was "unwarranted." He defended the withdrawal of US troops from northern Syria, arguing it was the only way to preserve their lives.
US President Donald Trump also weighed in on the situation, tweeting that it was time for the Kurds to start heading to the "Oil Region," a non-Kurdish, crude-rich desert zone in Syria's northeast under US control.
