The Turkish military shelled Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) forces at the Menagh air base near Azez in northern Syria as well as Syrian regime forces on Saturday, continuing to hit PYD targets on Sunday while demanding that the PYD withdraw from positions near the border even though the PYD warned on Sunday that they would resist any Turkish intervention.
Ankara is also mulling a ground offensive in Syria along with Saudi Arabian troops, after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu announced over the weekend Saudi Arabia is deploying fighter jets to Turkey's İncirlik Air Base in Adana province.
“If there is a strategy [against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)], then Turkey and Saudi Arabia could enter into a ground operation,” Çavuşoğlu was quoted as saying by the pro-government Yeni Şafak and Habertürk dailies on Sunday.
Ankara hitting PYD targets and talking about the possibility of a ground offensive into Syria is further complicating the efforts of world powers to end the hostilities in Syria within a week and alarmed Washington and Moscow.
US Department of State Spokesman John Kirby urged Turkey on Saturday to halt military strikes on Kurdish and Syrian regime targets in the northern province of Aleppo.
“We are concerned about the situation north of Aleppo and are working to de-escalate tensions on all sides,” Kirby said in a statement. “We have urged Syrian Kurdish and other forces affiliated with the [People's Protection Units] YPG not to take advantage of a confused situation by seizing new territory,” Kirby said...
[todayszaman.com]
14/2/16
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Syrian Kurds reject Turkish demands. France calls on Turkey to stop
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US concerned about the situation north of Aleppo and urges Turkey to halt Syria strikes
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Turkey will no longer be in a “defensive position” over maintaining its national security interests amid developments in Syria, Deputy Prime Minister Yalçın Akdoğan has said, after the Turkish army shelled Democratic Union Party (PYD) militias across the border...
ReplyDelete“Can any team play defensively at all times but still win a match? … You can win nothing by playing defensively and you can lose whatever you have. There is a very dynamic situation in the region and one has to read this situation properly. One should not become withdrawn because of concerns and fears,” Akdoğan told private broadcaster Kanal 7 on Feb. 14.
His words followed Turkey’s shelling of militias from the PYD in Syria, an offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).....hurriyetdailynews.com