Turkey vows to push Kurds out of north
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday that his military “won’t stop” trying to oust Syrian Kurdish fighters from Syria’s north, as he met with the leaders of Russia and Iran for talks on resolving the conflict.
The three countries, which have teamed up to work for a Syria settlement despite their differences, reaffirmed their commitment to Syria’s territorial integrity and the continuation of local cease-fires. They called on the international community to provide more aid for war-ravaged Syria.
Erdogan, President Vladimir Putin of Russia and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani were holding their second summit to discuss Syria’s future since attending a similar meeting in Sochi, Russia, in November.
Erdogan said Turkish troops, which last month took control of the northwestern enclave of Afrin, would move eastward into Manbij and other areas controlled by the U.S.-backed Peoples’ Protection Units, or YPG, which Turkey considers to be terrorists.
“I say here once again that we will not stop until we have made safe all areas controlled by the (YPG), starting with Manbij,” Erdogan said.
He stressed that Turkey’s fight against the YPG would not distract from efforts to eliminate the remnants of Islamic State group from the country.
Erdogan said the Turkish and Russian militaries were discussing the possibility of establishing field hospitals in Syria’s Tal Abyad town to take care of people injured in attacks in the Damascus’ eastern Ghouta suburb. He also spoke of plans to establish bakeries to help feed those in need.
“Be it the Turkish armed forces, be it the Russian armed forces, (we) want to quickly establish a field hospital so that initial treatment can be provided,” Erdogan said.
The three leaders’ summit meeting came as the U.S. said its military mission to eradicate the Islamic State in Syria was coming to a “rapid end” but offered no timetable for withdrawal. President Trump had said earlier that the primary U.S. mission was to defeat Islamic State and “we’ve almost completed that task.” He said Tuesday he wants to bring troops home to start rebuilding the U.S.
Trump’s comments conflict with views of his top military advisers, some of who spoke at a separate event in Washington about the need to stay in Iraq and Syria to finish off the militant group, which once controlled large swaths of territory in both countries.