Russia and the US deploy troops to northern Syria, the situation becomes complicated

The Russian Defense Ministry said the deal was agreed between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.

Russian military police in Syria. Photo: Sputnik

Accordingly, the new Russian military police force will begin to carry out assistance missions, protect the Syrian border, ensure the safety of civilians, patrol designated areas, and assist the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and their weapons to retreat to an area 30 km from the Syrian-Turkish border.

The main military police force that Russia is strengthening this time is mainly the military police of the Chechnya region, southern Russia.

Türkiye launched an offensive against Kurdish militia on October 9, shortly after US President Donald Trump ordered US troops to withdraw from northeastern Syria.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russian military forces and Syrian border guards are present in the demarcated areas, and warned that if the YPG does not withdraw from the border area soon, it will be immediately "crushed" by Turkish armed forces.

Under the terms of the Russia-Turkey deal, the two sides' forces have been conducting patrols along a 10-kilometer stretch of the Syrian border, focusing in particular on areas where US forces are stationed along with their Kurdish allies.

According to confirmation from Russia and Türkiye, the Syrian Kurds have been withdrawing from many areas within the safe zone that Türkiye desires. However, one of the factors that is making the situation more complicated is the redeployment of more US troops to major oil fields in the northern region of Syria.

The US Department of Defense said it does not rule out the possibility of bringing back US troops who have just withdrawn from Syria to protect oil facilities along with Kurdish forces. In addition, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) wants to deploy a mission there. These are things that Türkiye will find difficult to accept.