Turkey military says chief meeting US, Russian counterparts on Syria

A Pentagon official said, yesterday, that the USA troops are in Manbij to “reassure and deter”.

The military summit in Antalya was the second meeting of the Russian and US military chiefs in less than a month.

The Kurds don’t like ISIS and the Turkish-backed troops.

The Kurdish fighters have seized considerable territory from the Takfiri terrorist group Daesh in Syria and have majorly contributed to counterterrorism operations in Iraq. “Who will control those areas?”

A cameraman walks next to the wall Turkey had been constructing to boost security along its border with conflict-stricken Syria, left, as seen from a military outpost near the town of Kilis, southeastern Turkey, on March 2, 2017. “If we go to Manbij and the PYD is there, we will hit them”. It adds to around 500 US military personnel already in Syria, Dorrian said. He said the deployments are temporary. “It is a huge policy change”, he said. These special operators include U.S. Army Rangers from the 75th ranger battalion, who were spotted amassing in northern Syria earlier this week.

Manbij is a flashpoint because Turkey claims that Syrian Kurdish fighters it considers a threat to Turkey are operating in the city, despite USA denials. Ankara declared the militia a terrorist group and voiced rage over its inclusion in United States plans for a Raqqa offensive. “We are discussing the next step with our allies”, the official said.

The defeat of the Islamic State in Manbij last August offered an example of the complications likely to arise.

Manbij is now controlled by the MCC.

Ankara views the YPG as a terrorist organization because of its alleged links to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), but Washington regards the YPG as an ally in Syria.

Turkey has said it wants to create a safe zone inside Syria along the border, 60 miles long and about 28 miles deep.

Cavusoglu also said that Ankara and Moscow agreed to prevent clashes between the Syrian government forces and the Turkey-backed opposition (the Free Syrian Army militants), claiming that both of them pursue the same goal of annihilating the ISIL.

Earlier this week, the Pentagon announced that the United States had deployed a small number of forces in and around Manbij in an attempt to prevent clashes between the Turkey- and US-backed forces active in the area.

He noted that the SDF’s mission in Manbij ended as per an agreement signed by the two sides, adding that the SDF forces returned to their previous positions. He did not mention Turkey, but the Turkish government has insisted that Kurds are still in Manbij and that it intends to eject them by force if necessary. Join us and support our work.

The SDF is also the force that negotiated the deal with Russian Federation to have Syrian troops police the front line between the rival Manbij fighters – without US input, according to USA officials.

“We’ve long supported the YPG within the context of the SDF, the Syrian Democratic Forces that are operating in northern Syria”, Toner said, responding to questions during a press briefing on March 8. Asked if they had been used yet, Dorrian said he did not believe so. “It’s a big mess, and we are scared about the future of the people living in Manbij”.

A member of the US-led coalition fighting against IS, Turkey is also cooperating with Russian Federation in Syria.