The Turkish TSG Istanbul warship has entered the port of Latakia. Will Syria respond?
14-07-2026 10:20 Politics
1in.am Just a few days after the NATO summit in Ankara, the Chief Commander of the Turkish Naval Forces, Admiral Erjument Tatloğlu, has entered the Syrian port of Latakia aboard the TCG Istanbul frigate. This was reported by Anadolu, referring to an official statement from the Turkish Ministry of Defense.
The Turkish state agency added that this is the "first visit of the Turkish naval forces to Syrian waters since 2011." The frigate, which is the pride of the Turkish naval forces, entered combat service in 2024. It was designed and built as part of the MILGEM modernization program for the naval forces. Almost all of the warship's armaments, radars, and electronic warfare systems are "produced" in Turkey.
The Turkish frigate entered the port of Latakia less than a week after French President Emmanuel Macron's visit to Damascus. Earlier this year, the Syrian government confirmed an agreement to grant the French company concessionary management of the port of Latakia. The French company has committed to invest 230 million euros and operate the port exclusively for civilian cargo transportation for thirty years.
The entry of the Turkish frigate into the port of Latakia effectively signals that the French company can operate only under the condition of Turkey's military presence. Latakia is a province in Syria populated by Alawites, where the authority of the transitional government in Damascus is low. Last year, Alawites in that province faced brutal violence.
The other well-known Mediterranean port in Syria, Tartus, is a Russian naval base. According to reports, the Syrian transitional government has "no principled objection" to the Russian military presence. The Turkish warship entered Syrian waters the day after the Israeli Knesset's decision to dissolve.
Parliamentary elections are scheduled in Israel on October 27, and the coming months are expected to be "hot" in every sense. Defense Minister Katz has stated that Turkey's "all attempts to expand military presence in Syria will receive a proportional response." It is unclear how and when Israel might respond to the specific fact of the Turkish "incursion" in Latakia.
It seems obvious that this move is coordinated with the United States. During the NATO summit, U.S. President Donald Trump met with the transitional Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa. Israel has a military presence in southern Syria and the Golan Heights. Will the Arab country overcome the military presence of several countries at once? Is everything being done to partition Syria?
* This text was automatically translated by Artificial Intelligence (AI).
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