Sputnik- Turkey�s �Operation Olive Branch� was recently commenced with the stated intent of destroying what Ankara believes to be �Kurdish terrorists� in the northwestern Syrian region of Afrin.

The NATO member earlier warned that it would be forced to�intervene there in�response to�the existential threat that the US' plans for�deploying a 30,000-strong "Border Security Force" pose to�its security, as�Turkey thinks that this military grouping's Syrian PYD-YPG Kurdish leader is actually an offshoot of�the terrorist-designated PKK. From Turkey's perspective, the US is helping to�create a "terror corridor" all along�its southern borderland, one whose western-most extension is dangerously just a few dozen kilometers from�the Eastern Mediterranean and could tantalizingly tempt the Syrian Kurds to�make a land grab against�Turkey's maritime Hatay Province sometime in�the future.

From the way that Turkey presents it, "Operation Olive Branch" was a �no-brainer' and should enjoy broad international support, but�that's actually not the case at�all. Syria has resolutely rejected what it has described as�an "invasion" of�its territory, one which President Assad boldly said is meant to�support "terrorists", not defeat them. Even Turkey's Astana partner Iran has asked it to�discontinue its operation, and Ankara�� somewhat expectedly it must be said�� can't even count on�the support of�its Washington mutual defense ally. Not only that, but�Russia has been reticent in�its stance towards�the latest developments, not exactly condemning them but�at the same time also refusing to�openly endorse them. Moscow's delicate "balancing" act probably has a lot to�do with�its multifaceted regional interests, particularly those with�Ankara and Damascus, which make it extremely difficult for�Russia to�take sides.

As the Afrin campaign finishes its first week, conflicting reports have predictably emerged about�the number of�civilian casualties and the military progress being made, with�it being hard to�discern truth from�fiction in�the murkier-than-usual fog of�war that's settled over�this isolated corner of�the region. This means that any analytical conversation about�this topic is better suited to�discussing motivations, reactions, and forecasts than�nitty-gritty details such as�mountaintop captures and battlefield deaths, which are undoubtedly important but�at this time nothing more than�a game of "he says, she says". The overall strategic dynamics at�play, however, remain much more relevant if one aspires to�grasp a comprehensive picture of�what's happening, where it's headed, and why.

Andrew Korybko is joined by�Steven�Sahiounie, Syrian-American journalist,�Serap�Balaman, Turkish political commentator.