Turkey slams US request for assurances on Syrian Kurds
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused the U.S. national security adviser of making "a very serious mistake" today by demanding that Ankara guarantee the safety of Kurdish fighters in northeastern Syria before the U.S. withdraws its troops from the war-torn country.
A strained morning of negotiation in Turkey ended without assurances of protection for forces that fought alongside U.S. troops against the Islamic State group, and indeed brought them fresh new threats from Turkey.
The diplomatic setback raised fresh questions about how the U.S. would protect its allies in the fight against ISIS and about the pace of the drawdown of U.S. forces in Syria.
"John Bolton has made a very serious mistake. We cannot make any concessions in this regard," Erdogan said today, just before Bolton left the country with tensions between the NATO allies at new highs. He added that Ankara's preparations for a new military offensive against what the Turkish leader describes as terror groups in Syria are "to a large extent" complete.
Bolton had insisted Turkey refrain from conducting any operation unless it was approved by and coordinated with the U.S. Turkey's presidential spokesman fired back publicly Turkey would not seek permission from its allies to conduct a military offensive against Syrian Kurdish fighters, but was willing to coordinate operations.
A senior administration official said Erdogan's comments did not reflect President Donald Trump's understanding of his Dec. 23 conversation with the Turkish leader, days after the U.S. president announced his intent to withdraw American troops from northeastern Syria. Trump "thought he got a commitment from Erdogan" to protect the Kurds, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the official wasn't authorized to speak on the record.