Why Turkey is Preparing to Invade Syria (Again) 

This will be the final video I’m releasing in 2022. Thank you to everyone who joined and watched my content this year! This has been the most turbulent year for international relations since 1989, and next year doesn’t show many signs of changing. If you’d like to stay more up to date on what’s going on in our world, consider checking out my Modern Conflicts series on Nebula, the latest episode of which covers the civil wars in Libya. It’s only $11.79 a year here: curiositystream.com/?coupon=reallifelore

Japan doesn't involve any war, but Toyota is not limited to that.

26:06 one of the most devastating and complicated situations in the world, but seeing the the US and Iran on the same side against Israel and France is always so unfathomable that all I could do was laugh. Foreign affairs is endlessly messy.

What a complicated mess! The great thing about this program is that it explains the motivations of countries allying with different groups which is something news agencies are clueless about or doesn’t make a good sound bite for them.

Turkey didn't "blamed" them, PKK OWNED the attack and declared that they did it.... What a way of explaining from the first second. What a mess.

Wow this one had a lot of geopolitics that lie outside the main media’s scope. Very interested to see how tight a game is being played in Syria by Turkey and Russia

I know there’s so much more to learn about the situation in the Middle East but you have given me more clear information than the news has for the past 10 years

As a Kurd living in Turkey, I do not have any problems. I have equal rights. Every Kurd who does not disturb the internal peace in the country is as valuable as a Turk. The Kurds who are disturbed by this situation are the Kurds living outside the borders of Turkey. Apart from that, 90% of the Kurds living within the borders of Turkey do not leave Turkey and do not attempt to rebel because we are Turkey. We see their lands as our own land and the Turks as our own brothers. Kurds who left Syria, Iraq and Iran, please do not interfere with us and our Turkish brothers. If you continue to threaten our borders with the PKK and other terrorist organizations, we will defend the Turks and Turkish lands until the last drop of our blood. How happy is a Kurd who lives under the superior Turkish identity. and I'm a Turk

That one passed me by in the news. Thanks for shedding a light on this topic.

Watching this after the devastating earthquake and wonder how much this event has changed this ambition

I really quite enjoyed the animated segments on the map, it adds a lot of value to the video

14:52 i remember how much we as Turkey tried to buy patriot air defence systems and how hard usa tried to not sell back in 2010-12 era. we needed the air defence system more than every other nation since there are wars waging on our north, east and south sides. america just did not sell it and and this led us buying s400. even trump admitted that.

Nice video, unfortunately it does have some false/lacking information: -France is not ethnically homogenous with them even dealing with their own ethnic terrorists in the past against the FNLC and the ETA (Corsican and Basque seperatists respectively). -There is no mention of the Kurdish government in Northern Iraq that is virtually independent from Baghdad since 1992 that has good relations with Turkey and allows them to not only conduct airstrikes in their own lands but allows them to set up military based in Iraqi Kurdish soil. The Iraqi Kurdish government allows this due to a power struggle between them and the PKK that culminated in a civil war in the region in 1994. -Both the figures for inflation and the number of refugees in Turkey are state numbers that should ABSOLUTELY not be trusted. Inflation is reaching 200% on a lot of goods and the number of Syrian refugees has been reported as being 'stable' for the last 4 years. -There was no mention of the fact that the first military operation in Syria by Turkish Armed Forces was conducted against ISIS forces that had reached the Turkish border. The plan was to show the Americas that the Kurds weren't their only ally in the region against ISIS (and ISIS has been practically dead for the last couple of years anyway). -You did not mention the demographic shift that has taken place in Northern Syria during the civil war as most of the refugees to Turkey are Arabs/Turkmens (A group you entirely failed to mention) from Northern Syria. Before the war the region was majority Arab almost entirely with small Kurdish towns/communites (although I am not accusing the Kurds of ethnic cleansing its just that the Kurds who lived in the area wanted Kurdish rule so they stayed while the rest fled north) -This is not a mistake but I wish you talked more about the geography and how it affects conflicts in the region (specifically the mountainous landscape that allowed to the Kurds to live with low outside interference until recent history but made them splintered and without a common goal of nationalism (again, until recently)).

As a Syrian, all I can say is that this is probably one of the most complicated wars/political issue in history, its all literally a chess game.

Dang this HOI4 run is getting pretty interesting 🤔

3:35 "who pay taxes and contribute to the economy" made me burst out laughing, and anyone from Turkey will understand why :D

The sheer complexity of the geopolitical entangle in the Syrian territory and the tense and carefully balanced relationship between Turkey and Russia is absolutely astounding. I don't know how I'd even begin to understand a fraction of what's happening, had I researched it on my own. But can I commend RLL for making such a ridiculously complex topic actually so accessible??? I pride myself in having a decently easy time in understanding complex geopolitical conflicts, but this is the first time I actually felt like, without this video, I would've been completely lost. The video is so amazingly well structured and it introduced every idea not a second later than it was needed so consistently, that I was able to follow a half an hour long essay on a multi state, multi ethnic, multi decade long, multi conflict web of war and geopolitics like it was nothing. Even beginning to untangle this myself would've been absolutely momentous. This is not just knowing about the topic. There are so many ideas that are mutually exclusive here and that they wiuldn't make sense if they were introduced in the wrong order. By starting with the motivations of the biggest players, the Turkish government and the Kurdish nation, RLL managed to construct a very cohesive and consistent narrative that still managed to convey the sheer depth and complexity of the topic. That takes very real writing skill and, up until this point, I was never able to see it. This video outright amazed me. It has got to have been one of the best geopolitics video I've seen.

This is a master class of geopolitical analysis

"Turkey is not ethnically homogenous like France." Bruh, you had literally the whole of Europe to pick from.

Can't say if it's because I am Turkish and already know a lot about all these topics or is it because you explained it so clearly but I felt like this was so well explained and I never felt it's too complicated to understand. Good job

23:45 it is not UN recognized Turkish EEZ, it is Sevilla University(International Reltions department) map which is asked to draw by Greece. It is just recognized by Greece and EU, nothing more. But you need to know that UN recognized Turkiye's EEZ at 24:08 as you showed through accepting the EEZ agreement between Libya and Turkiye.

Along with the great explanation, the map presentation and editing is extraordinary. Indeed a geopolitical masterclass.👏👏

its not just the ports Russia wants in Syria, there are gas and oil fields in Syria which they don't want Syria to tap into and start exporting to Europe

Wow, just stumbeled upon this channel / video, what a great content creater you are ! I'm a new fan, hoping for more interesting vids ! Keep it up 💪

A good lesson (or reminder) that the world is much more complex than the average person realizes

I am an Austrian and it is illegal to use any language other than German in any parts of our country. Which makes me question; why my common Europeans rage when they hear Kurds are not allowed to speak their own language in other countries lmao.

More videos like this please. It goes so much more in depth than traditional medias. I've learned more about this conflict in 30 min than in my entire life.

Message to Turks from an Arab: It's better to be alive and hated by the world than to suffer like the Palestinians or Arabs in kurdish territories. Do what you gotta do

Without this channel I would know nothing about current events

Lets hope this DOES NOT turn into a "great war of Africa" (also known as the second Congo war) like scenario. For those who don't know, the great war of Africa (1990s) was the bloodiest conflict in the world since WW2.

Kurdish can be spoken both in privite schools and in public school in Türkiye. There are universities derpartmans wich consist Kurdish language.And like every other country İf you live somewhere regardless of your nationality you become citizen.

As a turkish person our government does not have any conflict with any kurdish person, we define turkish people as people who are legal citizens of turkey and not based on any ethnic character. However, pkk is a terrorist group that caused harm to turkey by targeting the civilians and resulting in a lot of deaths. Their main goal is to establish a new regime in Turkey and they are terrorists. Therefore, as any government would do, government of turkey protects it's citizens. In the media it is seen as in Turkey there is a discrimination against kurdish people but there are actually isn't.

Ok there is a bit of bias in this video. I am not Turkish, I am Polish but implying (11:28) that Erdogans approval rate is "Barely hovering above 40%" making it look like it's really low is just deceiving to say the least where half of the European leaders stay below 40% constantly. Macrons approval stays around 35 to 40%, Olaf Scholz have 30% approval rating. His approval rating is staying on the Western European level.

Really interesting video with a sad but important to teach topic. I think there are hard times coming for everyone in this world. Many conflicts that are possibly coming in the next years.

I’m from Syria and I’m studying political science and international law and I believe your video has well explained the situation

Kurds should have their own country

This is such a complicated mess of war. I can't imagine how tough it would be for an average person just trying to peacefully live your life as best you can.

Istiklal (where the bomb explodes) is not just a shopping area, It's like Champs Elysées of Turkey.

Man, I knew all this and follow each of thesse events but it was overwhelmnig to watch all of this in one video. Basic yet covers almost every aspect of the conflicts. Well done.

This is some extremely good storytelling, well done.

Wow, I'm getting goosebumps of how all conflicts around the area are linked, from Libya to Ukraine to Iran (and further all world conflicts probably), and how complex it is and that it's not as simple as "Russia & Iran are allies" or "all Nato countries are allies" (Turkey & USA in this case) etc. etc. ...

What an excellent video. Thank you so much for the work you put into making your videos

Good god what a complicated web of death ☠️ and destruction

Ümit özdağ

Honestly thank you for this video I wouldnt of known ANYTHING about whats going on in Turkey without you

I really appreciate how you try to lay out all sides motives. You don't just tell the viewer who is right and wrong, you explain what they all want and seem to let the viewer choose.

Woah... Syria, Ukraine, Libya... Kurds... That's a geopolitical puzzle. So nice to get a broader view of regional conflicts. Thanks!

I am a Turk living in the capital Ankara. I have researched this subject for a long time from many domestic and foreign sources. By defending the freedom of the Kurds for years, the PKK hurt the Kurds the most. Kurdish children were forcibly smuggled into the mountains. Kurdish teachers and Turkish teachers were killed in school attacks. When you empathize, you will understand that this terrorist organization killed my teachers, my children, and talked about freedom in the international arena, how absurd this is. Türkiye fought against this terrorist organization for 40 years and spent 700 billion dollars. I'm talking about a huge amount of money and the number of soldiers killed is huge. The reason Turkey created the security corridor shown in the video is to prevent the PKK from becoming a state because if the PKK becomes a state and Turkey loses its control on its eastern border, Turkey and all European countries the potential for terrorist attacks will become high. Kurds are not terrorists, terrorists are terrorists. By restoring control in this region, Turkey will send the refugees to its territory and try to solve their economic problems.

The depth of your understanding due to the work you put in is incredible. This is classic geopolitics lecturing for free on Yt. Kudos RLL!

Honestly feel I got a much better understanding wtf is going on around Syria

As a resident of Tartus, I believe the Russian presence destroyed my city's economy. They took over the port and their military vehicles can be frequently seen in a lot of parts of town. It's a shame to not be able to see how this city would've developed if they weren't here.

Finally someone who didnt blame Turkiye for everthing and can seee the truth with his on eyes.Thank you man.

I am so impressed that you managed to put everyone’s interests into this video in such a simple straightforward way

"Turkey isn't a homogenous country like Germany or France" AHAHAHA

This video is incredible. It felt so smooth and I didn't notice that it ended

Your are so biased when talking about middle east. I mean you see and report everything from the mouth of Anglo-American point of view.

It is a very objective and informative video for the big picture of the current political situation in the region. Thanks for your effort. A little correction for 3:33 Turkey does not make any money from the taxes it collects from the southeast. In this region, on average people pay around a quarter of the taxes they have to pay. On the contrary, there is a flow of money from western cities to eastern regions.

Did you just unironically state that Germany and France are ethnically homogenous?

Quick extra: Turkey was FORCED to but S400s from Russia because Turkey was not able to recieve a lot of crucially important items after dealing with the US for defenses systems.

As a country the worst thing you could do is create division, animosity, exclusion and domination. You can then guarantee you will face an uprising. Leadership and governments can sometimes be so stupid

It’s kinda insane how geopolitical wars have nato countries on opposite sides all over Africa and the Middle East.

This was simply amazing! I realise you can’t account for everything in under half an hour but this summary was brilliant! I got a whole different understanding for these conflicts than I’ve ever had before!

I love that this video doesn't even go 1 minute before introducing another nation, person, or group that has some angle in all of this. This is probably one of the most complicated conflicts in recent history.

"despite their claims of having nothing to do with it" he said as he talked about terrorist organisations who perpetuate these sorts of attacks on a monthly basis in Turkey

О shit, this is complex.

the video keeps getting better and better. nice information gathering.

I thought I was well informed about the wars in this region but apparently I had no idea. Extremely well made video!

bro what is Tape Receipt Ordogan💀

Thanks for all the work you do my man. Videos like this are more valuable than anything mainstream news orgs produce on complicated geopolitical topics.

“Homogeneous nation state like France and Germany” 😅

“Ethnically homogenous…like France…Germany…” LOOOOOL YOU MUST BE JOKING

as a turk, i'd like to add that pkk is a very dangerous terrorist group, it's not just a kurd army, they are literal terrorists who cause the most damage to kurds in southeast turkey, most of their victims are kurds who live in turkey. and i had never heard of this kurdistan talk until about this year when i started browsing foreign media, it kind of feels like a civil war is trying to be pushed onto turkey. my grandmother is a kurd, many people from my hometown are kurds, i had never once thought of them as separate people or their language as a non-usual thing, and i only went to my hometown for a couple of weeks in summer since childhood. i'll tell you almost everyone here is like that. we are one people. they were repressed by the government in the past, but turkish people themselves were repressed as well, at least muslim ones. anyway, turkey doesn't belong to only turks, it belongs to kurds and tatars and many other groups of people, we built this country together. also, the 1 million syrians erdoğan said he'd send back will be going to newly made houses (sponsored by qatar) in the safe zone, where they will be able to live freely. if they will go, they will go with honor and safety. president erdoğan himself has said that he will never force any of them out of this country, and they are free to stay here.

Turkey seems to be playing 4D chess right now.

Congratulations on astutely sorting out this mess.

We declared war because Syria is sending refugees non-stop and now we are advancing

That joke about France and Germany being ethnically homogenous was quite funny

haha he thinks france and germany are ethnically homogeneous

I was legit shocked to see what countries sided with and against each other, considering some of the countries on the 'same side' are mortal enemies that want each other dead more than a fish needs water

Türkiye was right about this. The USA should have listened to the Turkish government in the first place

12:29 All throughout the video, Turkish controlled areas in Syria were colored in blue and green. But after you mentioned ISIS, suddenly Turkish controlled areas changed color to purple, the same color as ISIS. That's an insidious manipulation attempt if I've ever seen one.

"They formally called themselves the YPG, who the Turks would say equated to the PKK," he said. "So we literally played back to them that you've got to change your brand. What do you want to call yourself besides the YPG? With about a day's notice they declared that they were the Syrian Democratic Forces." "I thought it was a stroke of brilliance to put democracy in there somewhere. But it gave them a little bit of credibility," Raymond Thomas, US general.

France is not an ethnically homogenous country

Honestly I am Kurdish and I don't feel supressed at all. Either you or I tell the truth. Like many other countries here are minor problems as well. Please don't exaggerate them.

1:37 "Turkey isn't entirely an ethnically hemogenous state unlike france japan and germany." Bretons, Ainus, Polish, Frisians, Tatars, Basques, Catalans and Bavarians: Are we a joke to you? Edit: oh yeah, don't forget Corsica, the group France tried to genocide for years, like the Turks do with Kurds, lol Edit2: My point is not that these groups rebel like kurds, my point is that they exist, it debunks the fact these countries are ethnically homogenous. oh and Turkish germans can be tatars too

3:54 the Constitution says Every people that live in Turkey is Turks. It is not used as a ethnicity in here. It is used as something like saying that you are Biritish even though you are Scottish.

This was a superb geopolitical and foreign affairs briefing! Jolly good job, Sir! Keep up the good work!👍

Thanks for all the effort.. it is really the best content that ever described this conflict

The map you're using at 0:26 to show the situation is *insanely* inaccurate, mate. Cizre is a turkish town inside turkey, but it looks halfway into Syria in that map. And neither are you covering the reality of the effect of the refugees inside the turkish society. I'd suggest doing research into how this affected turkey before covering this subject in a video such as this, you're providing incomplete info, which is painting the turks under a biased perspective. They pull enough antics to criticize, but if you're out here making videos for people to understand situations, you have an obligation to give them an actual and accurate truth.

Because Islam is the religion of peace guys. Remember, peace!

one of the finest modern history lessons I've ever seen. GREAT job

" In Turkey's case would result in the loss of basically the entire southeast of the country along with the millions of people who live there who pay taxes and contribute to the economy" Regions where Kurds are majority consistently the least tax-paying regions in Turkey. Basically, Turks in the west and center carry the economic burdens of Kurds living in the east who don’t pay any tax. As a Turk, I strongly believe that we will be better off without Kurds.

As a Kurdish I can clearly see that the problem is not Turkish- Kurdish problem. Some-people would like to divide and rule the Turkey. We Kurdish and Turkish are brothers.

13 million Syrian people invaded us.

This video aged so bad. Turkey just agreed to withdraw all his forces from Syria.

2:50 casually shows the Jordanian flag

I’m Kurd who live in Istanbul my family fought in Turkish liberation war and almost every Kurd I meet is ready to die for turkey foreign media show like we have problem or race problem but this is absolutely wrong turkey is our everything and it will remain like that

And this is why Turkey has such a big military.

After listening to this video my brain feels like a loaf of braided bread twisted into a Coney Island pretzel.

It is startling to see USA and Nato allied countries are supporting different goverments in Libya

Excellent video. So detailed and well researched. Well done Sir.