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U.S. tries to stop feuding allies from unraveling Syria strategy
Source: Reuters
WORLD NEWS | Mon Aug 29, 2016 7:00pm EDT
U.S. tries to stop feuding allies from unraveling Syria strategy
By Phil Stewart | WASHINGTON
The United States scrambled on Monday to get its feuding allies, Turkey and Kurdish YPG militia, to focus their firepower on Islamic State instead of each other after clashes that have threatened to unravel America's war strategy in Syria.
Turkey, which has long viewed Kurdish militants as its top security threat, upended U.S. assumptions about the conflict by launching a major push last week into northern Syria that has included areas controlled by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which includes experienced Kurdish YPG fighters.
In turn, Turkey has blamed a rocket attack from a YPG-controlled area for the death of one of its soldiers on Saturday. Turkey said it killed 25 Kurdish militants on Sunday.
"We've called on both sides to not fight with one another, to continue to focus the fight on ISIL," U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter told a Pentagon news conference, using an acronym for Islamic State.
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U.S. tries to stop feuding allies from unraveling Syria strategy
By Phil Stewart | WASHINGTON
The United States scrambled on Monday to get its feuding allies, Turkey and Kurdish YPG militia, to focus their firepower on Islamic State instead of each other after clashes that have threatened to unravel America's war strategy in Syria.
Turkey, which has long viewed Kurdish militants as its top security threat, upended U.S. assumptions about the conflict by launching a major push last week into northern Syria that has included areas controlled by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which includes experienced Kurdish YPG fighters.
In turn, Turkey has blamed a rocket attack from a YPG-controlled area for the death of one of its soldiers on Saturday. Turkey said it killed 25 Kurdish militants on Sunday.
"We've called on both sides to not fight with one another, to continue to focus the fight on ISIL," U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter told a Pentagon news conference, using an acronym for Islamic State.
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-usa-idUSKCN1142FR