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Monday, February 12, 2018

Turkey warns US to make or break strained ties

12 February 2018 - 12H33 GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME

by Alara Berrak and Biodun Iginla, France24, Istanbul

ISTANBUL -

Turkey on Monday warned the United States it was time to either make or break ties between the NATO allies that have strained badly over the Turkish operation in Syria, days ahead of key talks with Washington's top diplomat.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is due in Ankara later this week for talks aimed at finding a way forward as Washington expresses severe alarm over the campaign against Kurdish militia.

"Our relations are at a very critical point. They will either be fixed or these ties will be completely damaged," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in televised comments in Istanbul.

Ankara last month launched a military operation against the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia in the western enclave of Afrin in northern Syria.

While Turkey views the YPG as a "terrorist" offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the US has been working closely with the militia against the Islamic State extremist group in Syria and giving it weapons.

Turkey is also angry Washington has failed to extradite Pennsylvania-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen, who it accuses of ordering the 2016 attempted overthrow of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The US has called for Turkey to show restraint in its Afrin operation. But Ankara has warned the US to remove its troops from the YPG-held Manbij town as it threatens to extend the operation towards the town east of Afrin.

The US has more than 2,000 special forces and support troops inside Syria, mainly east of the Euphrates in an area also controlled by the YPG but separate from Afrin, which is west of the river.

Cavusoglu called on the US to "do what is necessary in Manbij".

He added the talks with Tillerson would discuss rebuilding the "broken trust", accusing Washington of making "serious mistakes" on Gulen and the YPG.

"We have open and clear expectations which we have repeatedly shared," Cavusoglu said. "We do not want promises, we want concrete steps to be taken."

US National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster was in Istanbul this weekend to meet Erdogan's spokesman and foreign policy advisor Ibrahim Kalin, the Turkish presidency said on Sunday.

The presidency said they reaffirmed "long-term strategic partnership relations between Turkey and the US" and "ways of developing a joint fight against terrorism in all its forms".

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Turkish official says Kurdish militia role in Raqqa offensive could trigger ethnic conflict

Sept 30, 2016 07H:35 GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME

by Alara Berrak and Biodun Iginla, Reuters and BBC News, Istanbul

An offensive to retake the Syrian city of Raqqa from Islamic State using Kurdish militia fighters would trigger an ethnic conflict there, a senior Turkish official said and warned that the operation should avoid triggering further divisions.

The official said Syrian Kurdish YPG has so far failed to entirely withdraw from the Syrian city of Manbij west of the Euphrates river despite promises for it to do so.

Turkey views the YPG as a hostile force with deep links to Kurdish militants who have fought a three-decade insurgency on Turkish soil, putting it at odds with Washington which sees the YPG as a valuable and effective ally in its fight against Islamic State in Syria.

Driving out Islamic State from the Syrian city of al-Bab is among the targets of Turkey's incursion into northern Syria which began last month, the official said but added that it would not be correct militarily to rush the campaign. He said Turkey's incursion into Syria could last for years if necessary.

The official said it would not be acceptable to leave the extradition issue of U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen in limbo for long after the failed coup, which Ankara accuses the preacher of masterminding.

Turkey and Israel will mutually name ambassadors within 10 days as part of the normalization of ties, the official said. He also said granting Turks visa-free travel into the European Union should not be postponed to next year and must soon be concluded.

Saturday, August 27, 2016

Turkey ratchets up Syria offensive, says warplanes hit Kurdish militia

Sun Aug 28, 2016 05H01 GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME

by Alara Berrak and Biodun Iginla, Reuters and BBC News, Istanbul

Rebels supported by Turkey fought Kurdish-backed forces in northern Syria on Saturday, as Ankara ratcheted up its cross-border offensive by saying it had launched air strikes against both Kurdish forces and Islamic State.

Turkey's government, which is fighting a Kurdish insurgency at home, has said the Syrian campaign it opened this week is as much about preventing Kurdish militia fighters from gaining territory in Syria as about pushing back Islamic State.

Turkey wants to stop Kurdish forces gaining control of a continuous stretch of Syrian territory on its frontier, which it fears could embolden the Kurdish militant group PKK, which has waged a three-decade insurgency on Turkish soil.

Turkish security sources said two F-16 jets bombed a site controlled by the Kurdish YPG militia, which is part of the broader U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) coalition. The sources also said the jets hit six Islamic State targets.

Turkish military sources said one of its soldiers was killed and three others wounded when a tank was hit by a rocket that they said was fired from territory held by the Kurdish YPG. The sources said the army shelled the area in response.

Syrian rebels opposed to Ankara's incursion said Turkish forces had targeted forces allied to the YPG and no Kurdish forces were in the area.

On the ground, Turkish-backed Syrian rebels fought forces aligned with the SDF near the frontier town of Jarablus. Forces opposed to Ankara said Turkish tanks were deployed, a charge denied by Turkey's rebel allies.

In Turkey, suspected Kurdish militants fired rockets at the airport in the main southeastern city of Diyarbakir, sending passengers and staff scrambling for shelter, Dogan news agency said. There were no reports of casualties.

Turkey's offensive into Syria began on Wednesday, supporting its rebel allies with Turkish special forces, tanks and warplanes. It seized control of Jarablus from Islamic State seeking to stop any Kurdish forces moving in first.

Saturday's use of warplanes against what Turkey said was a Kurdish YPG militia target highlights its determination to prevent any Kurdish territorial expansion in north Syria.

Any action against Kurdish forces in Syria puts Turkey at odds with its NATO ally the United States, which backs the SDF and YPG, seeing them as the most reliable and effective ally in the fight against Islamic State in Syria.

It adds complexity to the Syrian conflict that erupted five years ago with an uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and has since drawn in regional states and world powers.

"DANGEROUS ESCALATION"

The Jarablus Military Council, part of the SDF, had said earlier on Saturday that Turkish planes hit the village of al-Amarna south of Jarablus, causing civilian casualties. It called the action "a dangerous escalation".

The Kurdish-led administration that controls parts of northern Syria said Turkish tanks advanced on al-Amarna and clashed with forces of the Jarablus Military Council. But the Kurdish administration said no Kurdish forces were involved.

However, the leader of one Turkey-backed rebel group gave a rival account. He told Reuters the rebels battled the Kurdish YPG around al-Amarna and denied any Turkish tanks took part.

Turkish security forces simply said Turkish-backed forces had extended their control to five villages beyond Jarablus.

A video released by Turkey's military showed the Turkish Red Crescent distributing food and aid to people in Jarablus, with the help of Turkish troops. It also showed what appeared to be Turkish-backed rebels flicking v-for-victory signs in the town.

The newly formed Jarablus Military Council has said it was made up of people from the area with the aim of capturing the town and the surrounding region from Islamic State militants. However, the Turkish-backed rebels seized Jarablus first.

Several militias under the SDF banner pledged support to Jarablus Military Council after it reported the Turkish bombing.

The Northern Sun Battalion, an SDF faction, said in a statement it was heading to "Jarablus fronts" to help the council against "threats made by factions belonging to Turkey".

Tension has mounted in Syria's Aleppo region in the past year between the U.S-backed Kurdish YPG force and its allies on one hand and Turkish-backed rebel groups on the other. The two sides have clashed on several occasions.

Biodun Iginla, BBC News