Turkish Study Shows Public Support for Military Campaign in Syria

 

A new opinion poll shows strong Turkish public support for Turkey’s military campaign in Syria against a Kurdish militia¹.

The A&G polling company questioned Turkish citizens about the campaign. It reported that 90 percent of those asked expressed support for Operation Olive Branch, the name of the military action.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly told the public that Operation Olive Branch is a national struggle.

He told parliament last week, “Only Allah is victorious², and faith is more important than arms. If needed, we'll fight against the world.”

Turkey’s main media have all repeated Erdogan’s position, following a message with heavy religious overtones and talk of the country’s past.

Opposing voices, especially on social media, have faced arrest. Earlier this month, 24 people were arrested for publishing stories critical of the Syrian offensive on social media. Hundreds more have been detained.

Effect on upcoming elections

The aggressive reaction to criticism is seen by some observers as government nervousness over public support.

Huseyin Bagci is with the Middle East Technical University in Ankara. He said, ”People are supporting, yes. But are the people happy? I would doubt this. Every day, there are coffins⁴, with politicians running from one funeral to another. It will not be easy in the long run for them.”

The military launched Operation Olive Branch against the Kurdish militia YPG in January. Turkish officials have described YPG fighters as terrorists and linked the group to a rebellion inside the country. However, the militia is receiving assistance from the United States in the fight to contain Islamic State militants⁵.

"There is a national pride among Turks for this operation," said Cengiz Aktar, a political scientist. "We can safely say today, he ((Erdogan)) will win all the upcoming elections this year and next year.”

By 2019, Turkey will have faced three elections: local, general and presidential. Some observers think that Erdogan will call early elections to make the most of the nationalist feelings.

Observers say two questions are likely to affect him. The first is, how widespread is public support for Operation Olive Branch? The second: will the current level of excitement lead to votes for the Turkish leader?

Recent opinion polls have shown little change in support for Erdogan or his ruling AK party. While he has a big lead over his political opponents, polls show he is still short of the required 50 percent plus one vote needed to win re-election.

Since the launch of Operation Olive Branch, over 30 Turkish soldiers have been killed. Observers note that there have been few public demonstrations⁶ of support in Turkey’s main cities.

Differences with the U.S.

On Friday, top diplomats⁷ from Turkey and the United States met in Ankara to discuss their differences in Syria. The two sides agreed to try to rescue a strategic relationship that U.S. officials admitted had reached a crisis point.

After the meeting, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson spoke⁸ with reporters. He said, "We find ourselves at a bit of a crisis in the relationship.”

Tillerson called on Turkey to "show restraint in its operation.” But he added that the two countries "share the same objectives in Syria."

At the Ankara talks, Turkey proposed a joint⁹ deployment¹⁰ in Syria if YPG fighters leave territory near the border.

Words in This Story

Allah – n. the name of God in Islam

faith – n. belief

overtone – n. a secondary meaning or effect

doubt – n. questioning of one’s belief or opinion

coffin³ – n. a box for buying human remains¹¹

pride – n. feeling that you are better or more important than other people

survey – n. a study

strategic – adj. useful in carrying out a plan or reaching a goal 

1 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

2 victorious   

adj.胜利的，得胜的

参考例句：

• We are certain to be victorious.我们定会胜利。
• The victorious army returned in triumph.获胜的部队凯旋而归。

3 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

4 coffins   

n.棺材( coffin的名词复数 )；使某人早亡[死，完蛋，垮台等]之物

参考例句：

• The shop was close and hot, and the atmosphere seemed tainted with the smell of coffins. 店堂里相当闷热，空气仿佛被棺木的味儿污染了。 来自辞典例句
• Donate some coffins to the temple, equal to the number of deaths. 到寺庙里，捐赠棺材盒给这些死者吧。 来自电影对白

5 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

6 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

7 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

9 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

10 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

11 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。