In billions of dollars: This is how Turkey is trying to buy northern Syria

The Turkish parliament announced the implementation of an expensive plan to strengthen the southern region of Turkey and the Kurdish area stretching between Turkey and Syria.

The Turkish parliament announced that it has formulated an unprecedented economic plan at the instruction of President Erdoğan. As part of the ambitious plan, over 14 billion dollars will be invested in the development of the Kurdish regions in northern Syria and southern Turkey.

The goal of the program, as stated in the public documents, is "to reduce the economic gap between the Kurdish population areas and the rest of Turkey, and to enable a higher quality of life for citizens in the region."

Western sources argue that this is an attempt by Turkey to "de facto annex" the Kurdish northern Syria to the Turkish state, by making a massive investment in infrastructure, power stations, and drinking water supply facilities that will be built in a way that turns the Kurdish regions into a single unit under Turkey.

In addition, many within Turkey and Syria see the plan as an attempt to "buy peace" from the Kurds, while Erdogan tries to establish his control and influence over the new Syria.