Tabnak - The relations between the US and Turkey as two NATO allies are becoming more and more strained as Washington is keeping its line to support the Kurds in Syria. In the latest development in this regard, Washington’s decision to send arms for the Kurdish forces has sparked a reaction from Ankara.
The Washington Post reported today that the US President Donald Trump had approved a plan to directly arm Kurdish forces fighting in Syria as part of a US military plan to capture Raqqa, the Syrian city that is ISIS’ de facto capital.
Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White said that Trump made the decision Monday and described the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, or YPG, as ‘‘the only force on the ground that can successfully seize Raqqa in the near future.’’
‘‘We are keenly aware of the security concerns of our coalition partner Turkey,’’ White said in a statement. ‘‘We want to reassure the people and government of Turkey that the US is committed to preventing additional security risks and protecting our NATO ally.’’
Reacting to the report, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Nurettin Canikli criticized the announcement as a mere continuation of Obama's strategy.
"The Trump administration's support for a terrorist organization is not acceptable," Canikli told Turkey's A Haber news channel. "We believe, we hope, that the American administration will say no to this wrongdoing and give up this policy. This policy will not bring any benefit to anybody."
The Obama administration had been leaning toward arming the Syrian Kurds but struggled with how that could be done without torpedoing relations with Turkey, a key political actor in the Middle East.
The issue has come to a head now because battlefield progress this year has put the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces nearly in position to attack IS in Raqqa, although they are still attempting to isolate the city.
However, for its part, the YPG praised on Wednesday the "historic" US decision to arm its fighters battling ISIS and said it expected to play a stronger and more influential role in what it called the fight against terrorism.
"We believe that from now on and after this historic decision, [the YPG] will play a stronger, more influential and more decisive role in combating terrorism at a fast pace," Redur Xelil, YPG spokesperson, said in a written statement to Reuters News Agency on Wednesday.
Turkey has continued to lobby the Trump administration to change course in the days leading up to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s US visit, dispatching top Turkish officials, including General Hulusi Akar, the military chief of staff, and Hakan Fidan, the intelligence chief, to Washington. A Turkish delegation briefly met with President Trump on Monday, according to a report in the Turkish Daily Sabah newspaper.
It should be noted that it was not immediately clear whether the decision by Trump means the YPG will receive heavier weapons, including anti-tank missiles and armored vehicles. Both are likely to be needed if Kurdish troops are to successfully penetrate Raqqa, but both are objected by Turkey and could further put at risk the relations between Ankara and Washington.
