Turkey threatens more strikes on US-allied Syrian Kurds
April 30, 2017
Erdogan says more action possible against YPG fighters in Syria, insisting US support for Kurdish group must end.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday said Ankara was “seriously saddened” by footage showing US military vehicles operating close to the border with Syrian Kurdish fighters, threatening further military action against a group Turkey sees as “terrorists”.
His comments came amid rising tensions over the weekend along the border, with both Ankara and Washington moving armoured vehicles to the area.
Turkish forces last week carried out deadly air strikes on military positions belonging to the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), angering the US and sparking days of border clashes with the Kurdish fighters.
The US sent military vehicles with American flags to the Syrian side of the frontier accompanied by YPG fighters to carry out patrols, in an apparent bid to prevent further fighting.
Turkey views the YPG as a “terrorist” organisation and an extension of the Kurdish PKK group that has waged a three-decade insurgency against Turkey for greater independence.
