The fallout from the collapse of Bashar Assad will contribute to
Turkey’s Kurdish problem.  Those directing the rebellion are
masking the chaos that will ensue.  Rejecting the threat of
sectarian/ethnic violence, they claim that it is an excuse used by
the present regime to frighten their populace and neighbors.  But
looking at Turkey, the potential of confrontation with a Kurdish
community with irredentist aspirations will have grave
consequence. Turkish-Kurdish clashes date back for decades.
Turkey has sent its army into former Iraqi territory in pursuit of
Kurdish insurgents. The highest concentration of Kurds in Syria lie
on the border with Turkey. The majority of them were displaced
from Turkey years ago, and the resentment of loss of homes and
lands has not been forgotten. One of the elements that helped to
cement the positive Turkish-Syrian relations was Damascus’
assistance in controlling this latent problem. In the wake of
Assad’s fall, there will be no central authority to insure the quiet
of the border. In addition, there will be no monitoring of the Iraqi-
Syrian border for the transfer of arms and/or fighters entering
Syria and using it as base for undertakings. Turkey would then
face a hostile Syrian border, a hostile Iraqi border, and probably a
hostile internal community. As for the thought that the
“democracy movement” in Syria would use tanks and machine
guns on the Kurdish civilians is just too “Baathist.”

Ah, the Kurds again——one of my favorite topics.  The longest existing indigenous people in the world today without ever having a nation of their own are the Kurds.  I surely thought that when Saddam Hussein was eliminated, the Kurds would make their move, but I suspect the USA got in the way.  The only real problem is they have no outlet to the sea, but as I like to say, if not now, then when?!