Battle break in northern Syria: The US gives Erdogan what he wants

"The US and Turkey today agreed on a ceasefire in Syria," said US Vice President Mike Pence.

"It is not a truce," said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.

And now?

Such quibbling is not uncommon in diplomatic crisis talks. In this case, behind the contradictory explanations is more than just "semantics," as a pence adviser warped - but a bitter truth.

This truth is that Turkey is achieving its stated goal of expelling the Kurds from northern Syria - as well as Damascus, Moscow and Tehran.

On the other hand, US President Donald Trump can brag about having extinguished a fire he himself set. In the long run, however, the cost to Washington is enormous. The US has lost important ground in Syria - as well as international status and influence: which partner still trusts them?

Jonathan Ernst / REUTERS

"A great day": Trump praises himself

The biggest losers, of course, are the Kurds in the region: the bloodshed is stopped for the time being - but their uprooting is sealed.

"It looks as though the US has fallen prey to what Turkey has demanded," said Eric Edelman, a former US ambassador to Ankara, the New York Times. "I do not see what the Turks gave up."

Pence and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had rushed to Ankara, as a kind of auxiliary fire chief of their boss. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held the cards, despite Washington's - weak - sanctions threats. At first he refused an audience to the high guests. Then they met.

Four and a half hours later there was a nebulous communiqué - a page full of phrases, as they are known from toothless UN resolutions. In point 11 of 13, Turkey promised to "break" its offensive for 120 hours so that the Kurdish fighters from the Syrian border area could "pull away" under US troops.

The word truce did not occur. And before there were too many questions at a press conference, Pence and Pompeo set off again for the airport.

Huseyin Aldemir / REUTERS

In front of all demands bent: Mike Pence (right) and Erdogan

Trump's team has been ripped off, whether willingly or not. A government official from Turkey told The Washington Post that the paper served to "save the US face." "It was one of the simplest negotiations ever conducted."

How things really go on in northern Syria remained unclear at first. In any case, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Kurdish People's Defense Units (YPG) with Arab militias, accepted Ankara's agreement and, according to initial reports, it remained quiet during the night.

"A truce exists only between two legitimate sides," Cavusoglu insisted. Finally, Turkey sees the YPG as a terrorist group - and the agreement also allows Ankara to carry out "anti-terrorist operations" in northern Syria.

Burhan Ozbilici / AP

At the finish: Recep Tayyip Erdogan

What happens at the end of the five days is therefore quite uncertain. The "withdrawal" is said to be "enforced" by Turkish troops, albeit with "utmost circumspection" - a cynical euphemism for Erdogan's clear victory.

"In principle, the US validates Turkey's actions and allows it to annex part of Syria and expel the Kurdish population," a senior US official said to CNN. "That's what Turkey wanted and what the US president has sanctioned."

Trump - who had sworn allegiance to the Kurds last year - assured that they would "take care" of them. But nobody knows where the homeless are supposed to go, and that is not mentioned in the paper.

The president did not waste time to praise the agreement - and himself. "A great day for civilization," he tweeted. "Millions of lives are saved."

This is a great day for civilization. I am proud of the United States for sticking by me in the following a necessary, but somewhat unconventional, path. People have been trying to make this "deal" for many years. Millions of lives will be saved. Congratulations to ALL!

There is no doubt where Trump's sympathies lie. He praised Erdogan as a "fantastic leader" and "hard man" who "did the right thing" - that is, to "cleanse" northern Syria. Because Turkey has there "in all fairness a legitimate problem".

Of course Trump's critic did not stop that. The "alleged truce" was not a victory, neither for the Kurds nor for the US, said the Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal. "Today's announcement is a victory," said Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, one of the few in his party to attack Trump. "She is anything but that." Rather, the US would have failed an ally - "a bloodstain in the annals of US history."

While Pence flew back to Washington, Pompeo traveled to Tel Aviv to inform the Israeli government. Because that too should have questions.