Sanctions? Just Kidding Chum!

"Despite the agreement to halt the fighting, air and artillery attacks continue to target the positions of fighters, civilian settlements and the hospital [in Ras al-Ayn]."
"Turkey is violating the ceasefire agreement by continuing to attack the town since last night."
Mustafa Bali, chief spokesperson, northeastern Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)

"[D]espite the cease-fire deal, the Turks are still continuing airstrikes and ground offensive against Ras al Ain."
"Some civilians have been killed in Turkish strikes, as they were trying to save some injured [people] stuck inside the city."
Ilhan Hamed, Syrian Kurdish politician

"I never expected it to hold, as each side read it completely differently, and there’s no enforcement mechanism."
"We have very little to no leverage here. Honestly, I don’t know what to say other than that amidst this idiocy."
Faysal Itani, Syria expert, Atlantic Council, Washington

Deadly Turkish air strikes on Friday shattered an hours-old US-brokered deal to stop Ankara's military offensive against Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria

“As far as he [SDF commander, Mazloum Kobani] is concerned, the ceasefire is only where there’s active fighting and he totally rejects the idea of any kind of withdrawal, any removal of heavy weapons."
"So everyone seems to be talking a different language, which can only spell more trouble."
Charles Lister, Syria expert, Middle East Institute

None of which stops U.S. President Donald Trump from crowing that he has single-handedly, as a reflection of the great wisdom with which he is endowed, solved a long-standing problem in the Middle East. Throwing the loyal Kurds whose fighting mettle and sacrifices of over a thousand fighters in the conflict against Islamic State, assured the United States that the virulent threat of Islamist jihad reaching out to the United States no longer loomed as a concern.

A misapprehended belief on Trump's part to begin with, content to leave the tens of thousands of Islamic State prisoners for the Syrian Democratic Forces to be saddled with, guarding the venomous serpents from escape and the inevitable re-invigoration of their marauding, slaughtering forces on the local ethnic and religious minority populations along with outreach to foreign conscripts to jihad under the black-death banner of ISIL.

The brilliant tactical brain that modestly admitted that he had personally 'solved' the Islamic State threat to the world at large, appeared not to have envisaged the end result of allowing a Kurd-hating Erdogan free reign to cleanse the border of Syria of its stable Kurdish presence to create a "safe zone" for the Turkish president to dump millions of Syrian Sunni refugees. At one fell swoop extinguishing Syrian Kurds from the area, while forcibly settling Arab Syrians in their place as a buffer.

That wonderful agreement between an eastern and a western tyrant, saw one allowing the other to hold onto the territory his troops and allies had taken from Kurdish fighters, in the gullible pretence that Turkey had no intention, none whatever, of expanding its breach into Syrian territory. And since Recep Tayyip Erdogan had so obligingly agreed to presenting alongside Trump the facade of a withdrawal, the reward is twofold; Ankara retains plundered Syrian-Kurdish territory, and "massive" new sanctions will not be implemented.

Syrian rebel fighters in the border town of Tal Abyad.  Khalil Ashawi/Reuters

As shams go, the affair could not conceivably be any shabbier and transparent. While committing to a permanent ceasefire in the wake of a Kurdish retreat, no promise to withdraw the Turkey-partnering Free Syrian Army fighters, enabling them to continue enjoying their murderous conquest spree. Eliciting a comment from a Turkish official that thanks to the agreement, Turkey "got exactly what we wanted out of the meeting". 

The U.S. then felt free to agreeably convince the YPG forces to withdraw. "Good news", tweeted the world's premier twit. "This deal could never have been made three days ago. There needed to be some 'tough' love in order to get it done. Great for everybody. Proud of all!" According to U.S. Vice-President Pence, YPG leaders had "greatly welcomed", the deal. He also stated U.S. readiness to work with the YPG on an "orderly withdrawal" from the 32km zone, already underway on Thursday evening.

The YPG, on the other hand indicated no intention to surrender that territory.

Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump

Just spoke to President @RTErdogan of Turkey. He told me there was minor sniper and mortar fire that was quickly eliminated. He very much wants the ceasefire, or pause, to work. Likewise, the Kurds want it, and the ultimate solution, to happen. Too bad there wasn’t.....

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11:42 AM - Oct 18, 2019