An "impulsive" decision by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to invade northern Syria will further destabilize a region already caught up in civil war and puts America's Syrian Kurdish partners "in harm's way," Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Friday. Washington is
WASHINGTON — An"impulsive" decision by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to invade northern Syria will further destabilize a region already caught up in civil war and puts America's Syrian Kurdish partners"in harm's way," Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Friday.
"To be clear," Esper said,"we are not abandoning our Kurdish partner forces, and U.S. troops remain with them in other parts of Syria. The impulsive action of President Erdogan to invade northern Syria has put the United States in a tough situation." The remarks were the Pentagon's most explicit criticism of the Turkish operation, which began Wednesday as a campaign against the Syrian Kurd-led militia that has partnered with U.S. forces over the past five years to fight the Islamic State.
The official reiterated that Turkey would halt the operation and withdraw its forces only after the border area is cleared of"terrorists" but would not stay in Syria"one more day than is necessary." In a written statement, the chief Pentagon spokesman, Jonathan Hoffman, said that in a phone call Thursday with his Turkish counterpart, Esper"made it clear" that the U.S. opposes the incursion.
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