Ibrahim Kalin’s comments emerged after White House national security adviser John Bolton said he would stress in talks with Turkish officials this week, including President Tayyip Erdogan, that the Kurds must be safeguarded.
Kalin stated that Ankara’s targets were the militants of Islamic State and the Kurdish groups YPG and PKK, state-owned Anadolu news agency reported.
President Donald Trump will not withdraw American troops from northern Syria until the Turkish government guarantees it won’t then attack Syrian Kurdish forces that have been a critical allies for the U.S. in the fight against IS, Bolton said Sunday.
A commitment from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that protects the Kurds after American forces exit is something Trump is demanding, Bolton said, adding that it’s just one of several conditions that have to be met before U.S. troops leave.
“There are objectives that we want to accomplish that condition the withdrawal,” Bolton said.
According to NBC News he made the remarks when he was speaking to reporters traveling with him to Israel and Turkey as he tries to clarify for allies Trump’s Syria withdrawal policy.
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