JOURNAL 1

UNDERLYING TENSIONS IN TURKEY-SYRIA STAND-OFF

   
The last two days have witnessed (transitive verb) a dramatic escalation (direct object) in the tensions between Turkey and Syria.

   First, Turkey (proper noun) retaliated (action verb) to the shelling of the border town of Akçakale (proper noun) by firing at targets inside Syria (proper noun).

   And on Thursday (time adverb), the Turkish parliament approved (transitive verb) a motion allowing the government to take military action against Syria for the next year (time adverb).

   However, government sources (subject) stress that the motion is meant as "deterrence" against Damascus and that Turkey is not keen on a "unilateral (adjective) military operation".

   This (demonstrative pronoun) will come (intransitive verb) as a relief to the international community, as well as a considerable segment of Turkish citizens (plural noun). Public opinion in Turkey is (linking verb) strongly against any military escalation.

   

   Harsher Operations

   Hundreds, sometimes thousands of anti-war campaigners (plural noun) came out (intransitive verb) on the streets of major Turkish cities (place adverb) on Thursday to protest against the motion and the government's Syria policy.

   "Turkey has (state verb) no interest in starting a war (singular noun) with Syria." tweeted (action verb) İbrahim Kalın, who (interrogative pronoun) is a senior advisor to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. "But Turkey is (linking verb) capable of protecting (transitive verb) its borders and will retaliate when necessary."

   Many observers (plural nouns) say Turkey does not want to launch a large-scale (adjective) response to the assault on Akçakale (place adverb). Many Turkish observers (subject) too, believe Turkey does not intend to launch a military operation (direct object).

   Rather, the motion aims to prove Turkey's capacity to respond to a possible cross-border assault (singular noun), says foreign policy expert İlter Turan.

   "Turkey's message is clear (adjective): We (personal pronoun)  have responded to your Akçakale shelling, but if you (personal pronoun) continue, then we will be (linking verb) ready to give a harsher response (singular noun)." he (personal pronoun) says.

   Columnist Avni Özgürel (subject), who (interrogative pronoun) writes for the daily newspaper (common noun) Radikal, points to the apology that Syria has reportedly (adverb of manner) issued, saying : This (demonstrative pronoun) is a clear sign (common noun) that the vote in the Turkish parliament has reached (action verb) its goals.

   As part of Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu's long-planned but short-lived "zero-problem with neighbours (common noun)" policy, the two countries had mutually lifted visa restrictions and had signed free trade agreements (direct object).

   But since the uprising in Syria began back in March 2011 (dependent clause),  relations have turned upside down (independent clause).