Erdogan 'Seriously Saddened' US Supporting Syrian Kurdish Fighters
- by Andrea Singleton
- in Global
- — May 5, 2017
The relocation of Turkish troops to an area near the border with Syria comes a day after USA troops were seen patrolling the tense border in Syria.
Turkey's military said it killed 14 members of the militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in air strikes in northern Iraq on Saturday, as Ankara steps up a push against the group and their affiliates in Iraq and Syria.
Officials at the Pentagon would not confirm whether forces had been dispatched to the border region specifically to deter fighting between Turkish and People's Protection Unit, or YPG, forces.
Last week, Turkey struck at YPG positions inside Syria, killing 20 fighters and media activists, according to the group, prompting Kurdish parties to call for a US-enforced no-fly-zone over northern Syria.
Turkey carried out several air strikes in Syria and Iraq against Kurdish separatists and their allies on Wednesday, drawing the wrath of U.S. officials who accused Ankara of poor coordination.
Erdoğan said if the US ceases its cooperation with the terror groups in Syria and join forces with Turkey, the coalition forces can turn Daesh's de-facto capital of Raqqa into a "graveyard" for the militants.
The Turkish airstrikes, which also wounded 18 members of the USA -backed People's Protection Units, or YPG, in Syria were criticized by both the US and Russian Federation.
Turkey has long complained about U.S. military ties with the Kurds, complaining they are all terrorists.
The Turkish military said the strikes, of which local governments as well as the US and Russian Federation had been notified, were meant to prevent the PKK from sending terrorists, arms, ammunition, and explosives to Turkey. "We are doing what is necessary", Erdogan said in Istanbul.
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Ultimately Washington "will likely view relations with Turkey - a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member and critical ally - as more important to its broader strategic interests", it said.
The issue has been a source of tension between Ankara and Washington that threatens to hamper the fight against the Islamic State.
The Turkish leader said that Ankara's forces might bomb the YPG positions again, at any time it wants.
Also yesterday, the Syrian military said its troops and allied fighters had repelled an ISIL attack on a strategic area held by the government in a southeastern area of Aleppo province.
"We are willing to go to Khan Sheikhoun and we have undertaken some actions", Ahmet Uzumcu of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons told a small group of reporters in The Hague.
But the United States considers it to be a key ally in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) in Syria.
For weeks rebel fighters, backed up by US forces, have fought to try and take control of the city and its dam.
Erdogan's comments come ahead of a meeting with President Donald Trump on May 16 in the United States.
"We hope that this military mobilisation is not meant to provoke our forces or for another objective linked to entering Syrian territories". Before the event, Mr. Trump signed two more executive orders on trade, as he continued to follow through on his tough talk from before and after the election, vowing to do more to protect U.S.jobs at home from what he says are unfair practices by Canada, Mexico, and other nations. However, some have gone to the Manbij area hoping that they wont be attacked by Turkish backed insurgents should the Turks decide to try and dislodge the Kurds.
