The Strategist

Turkey Dissaproves the US and Russian Actions in Syria



10/14/2015 - 16:33



The Turkish Foreign Ministry had summoned the ambassadors of the US and Russia to warned them against supporting the Syrian Kurds in the fight against Islamic State.



Foreign and Commonwealth Office via flickr
Foreign and Commonwealth Office via flickr
At the meeting was described official Turkish view on the Syrian Kurds Party "Democratic Union" to Russian and American diplomats, said the representative of the Turkish Foreign Ministry on Wednesday, 14 October. Neither the US nor Russia should deliver any weapons or help the party in any other way, according to the Turkish authorities. Ankara is considering "Democratic Union" as the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which is banned in Turkey and declared a terrorist organization.

As reported by AP, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu expressed discontent of the Turkish side to the ambassadors about reports of arms supplies to Syrian Kurds. According to him, there is a risk that these weapons could fall into the hands of supporters of the PKK. Since July 2015, 140 Turkish soldiers were killed in the terrorist attacks organized by the PKK. Over 1,700 Kurdish rebels died in bombings of the Turkish army.

Earlier, military transport aircraft the US dropped about 50 tons of ammunition for Syrian troops fighting against Islamic State militants. However, the representative of the US Central Command did not say which exactly group received the cargo. In turn, a senior official of Russia met with the head of the "Democratic Union" Salih Muslim, and discussed with him issues of combating Islamic state, reports AFP.

Earlier, Defense minister of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman and Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeyr sharply criticized Russia's actions in the Syrian at a meeting with Vladimir Putin and Sergei Lavrov in Sochi. As reported on Monday, October 12 by agency Reuters, the Saudi Minister said that the Russian military operation in Syria is fraught with "dangerous consequences" for the situation in the country. Moscow is being drawn into "sectarian war" with its active involvement of the new forces of extremism in the conflict and alienation of ordinary Sunni Muslims. Representatives of Saudi Arabia called on Moscow to help in the fight against terrorism in Syria by joining the existing coalition, which unites more than 20 countries.

Meanwhile, at a press conference after his meeting with the Russian leadership, Adel al-Jubeyr said that his country is in favor of dialogue between the government and moderate opposition in Syria and the creation of a transitional government. The minister stressed that his country, like Russia, is committed to the preservation of a unified Syrian state, but insists on the resignation of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. He pointed out that Moscow dispelled Saudi’s fears that Russia's actions in Syria can be interpreted as an alliance with Iran.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that during the dialogue, the parties came to a mutual understanding necessary for further cooperation on the Syrian issue.

source: afp.com, reuters.com