Ankara has
urged Washington to unconditionally support the expansion of its
battle against the terror threat, in particular Kurdish militias,
warning that those hindering Turkey’s right to self-defense will be
considered terrorists and acted upon accordingly.
“The
only thing we expect from our US ally is to support Turkey with no
ifs or buts,” Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told a
news conference after a five-hour security meeting with cabinet and
state officials.
Following
the car bomb attack on a military convoy in Ankara this week which
left 28 people dead, a breakaway faction of the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK) claimed responsibility for the attack, and Turkey
has vowed to intensify its fight against the Kurds both at home and
in Syria.
“If 28
Turkish lives have been claimed through a terrorist attack we can
only expect them [the US] to say any threat against Turkey is a
threat against them,” Davutoglu stated.
The US
however considers the Syrian Kurdish YPG to be one of the main
fighting forces against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) in
Syria. Yet on Friday, during a phone conversation between President
Barack Obama and his Turkish counterpart, the US leader stressed that
“YPG forces should not seek to exploit circumstances in this
area to seize additional territory,” in northern Syria where
the Syrian army and the Kurdish militia, aided by Russian air power,
have been making large gains.
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