European leaders took note on Thursday 17 October of the announcement of a break in fighting in northeastern Syria to allow the Americans to extract Kurdish YPG forces. However, the President of the European Council considered this to be insufficient (see EUROPE 12351/3).
“The so-called ceasefire is not what we expected. In fact, it is not a ceasefire, but a demand of capitulation of the Kurds”, he regretted at the end of the European Council on 18 October. “We must be consistent and reiterate our call for a permanent halt to [Turkish] military action and respect for international humanitarian law”, he added, saying that this was not the result of the US-Turkish agreement.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for patience. “We must wait and see if the ceasefire will have the desired effect, especially for children, families who have had to flee their homes”, she said.
But Europeans do not want to stand idly by. “We would like to help find a political solution to this problem”, said Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. “We must try to understand and bring Turkey back to more reasonable positions”, added French President Emmanuel Macron, who described the offensive as “madness”. According to him, the Turkish operation questions the functioning of NATO, of which Turkey is a member.
Asked about possible economic sanctions against Ankara, the German Chancellor recalled that Turkey hosts millions of refugees. She said that Germany wanted the EU to continue its financial support to Turkey for their accommodation. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to open the migration floodgates.
Mrs Merkel also recalled that the priority should be the political process in Syria. “We have tried to have a constitutional committee for Syria. This political process is essential to create the return of Syrians. That is where the priority should be. However, this has been overshadowed by recent events”, she regretted.
The French President and the German Chancellor could meet the Turkish President on the margins of the NATO Summit in London in early December. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant with editorial staff)