October 15- October 21, 2019
THE LATEST IN U.S.-TURKEY RELATIONS
THO Events
RECENT Events:

On Wednesday, October 16, 2019 the Turkish Heritage Organization hosted a timely panel discussion on “ The Future of Syria: Syrian Kurds and the Realities in the Region ” The panel featured  Eva Savelsberg , President of the European Center for Kurdish Studies, Germany;  Wa’el Alzayat , CEO of Emgage Foundation and former advisor at the U.S. Department of State; and  Joel Rubin , National Security Expert and Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State.

UPCOMING Event:

NOVEMBER 6, 2019

THO will be hosting Former Vice Admiral Kadir Sagdic in November, 2019 both in New York City and Washington, D.C. Stay tuned as we announce more details!
The Latest Developments in US-Turkey Relations
A Timeline of Events
October 18, 2019
Meeting between the NATO
Secretary General J ens Stoltenberg and US Secretary of State Pompeo
October 17, 2019
CEASEFIRE/HALT REACHED
After meeting with Turkey ’s Erdogan , Pence and Pompeo say Kurds have 120 hours to withdraw from a ‘safe zone’ along Turkish border.
October 16, 2019
U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution by 354-60 on Wednesday to condemn President Trump’s decision to pull troops out of Syria. The resolution was blocked by Rand Paul claiming that this resolution does nothing to fix the problem.
October 16, 2019
US National Security Advisor O’Brien and Amb. Jeffrey meet with Turkish Defense Minister Akar in Ankara. Additionally, US National Security Advisor O'Brien and Ambassador Jeffrey meet with Turkish Presidency Spokesperson Kalin and Chief Adviser Aybet that afternoon.
October 15, 2019
United States Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) said he will introduce a bill on Thursday to punish Turkey for their offensive against the Kurds.
U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo and
and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu
discussed details on the phone .
October 14, 2019
U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on Turkey including top three Turkish government officials and two ministries in a way to force Turkey for a ceasefire with Kurdish troops in Syria.
October 13, 2019
President Trump orders U.S. troops in Northern Syria to withdraw as safely and quickly as possible due to Turkey’s incursion into the area. Trump signed an order on Saturday to call off its troops which would mean the end of most of the U.S. presence in that area.

October 12, 2019

Turkey launches continued efforts into Syria after President Trump pulls back 50 U.S troops. 

October 11, 2019
October 10th, 2019
President Erdogan discussed developments in a conference held by Turkey’s Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and threatened the EU that Turkey will open its border if EU takes critical stance against Turkey’s operation into Syria.
October 9th, 2019
The Turkish incursion into northern Syria begins to clear out Kurdish militia groups of People’s Protection Units (YPG), Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and Democratic Union Party (PYD). The operation’s code name is designated as the “Operation Peace Spring.” Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and their Syrian rebel allies backed by Turkey entered the region to clear out the Kurdish militia and begin to establishment of safe zone. 



President Donald J. Trump sent a letter to Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, urging him to make a deal with the Kurdish militia groups in Northern Syria. The letter was initially kept from the public.

Coming Up:
October 22, 2019
  • Deadline for Turkey's Operation Halt
  • Erdogan-Putin Meet in Sochi
November 13, 2019
  • President Trump and President Erdogan to Meet in Washington, D.C.
THO Publications
See what our THO Advisory Board Members have said in response to the developments last week in U.S.-Turkey relations here .
THO Multimedia
Salih Hudayar, the U.S. Representative of the East Turkestan Government in Exile discusses in the latest THO Exclusive Insight the current situation in China's East Turkestan territory and the treatment of the Uyghurs in the region.

Radhika Coomaraswamy, member of the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar on Myanmar, spoke to THO and discussed her work in the international community on how they are addressing the violence in Myanmar and around the world today.

THO NON-RESIDENT FELLOWSHIP
Stay tuned as THO releases our Non-Resident Fellowship Cohort for 2019-2020 soon!
ANNUAL REVIEW
Stay tuned as. THO released a comprehensive review of US-Turkey relations in 2018-2019 and predictions for the coming year soon!
CEASEFIRE AGREEMENT REACHED





THO welcomes the outcome of the Ankara Meeting between VP Pence and President Erdogan.
THO has also met with Vice President Pence previously.
THO Outreach
THO President Ali Cinar continued with media outreach on both Turkish and American news outlets.
THO Communications Manager Savannah Lane additionally also commented on the latest developments of U.S.-Turkey news.