ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — The top US diplomat was all but speechless when he was asked what President Donald Trump meant by the economic devastation of Turkey if they were to attack Kurds in Syria.
“You’ll have to ask the president," Pompeo told reporters in the Saudi capital on Monday.
“We have applied economic sanctions in many places; I assume he is speaking about those kinds of things. You’ll have to ask him,” added Pompeo.
In just two tweets on Sunday, Trump confused diplomats on both sides of the Atlantic. However, Pompeo still believes it is Trump's intention to withdraw US forces as ISIS nears destruction.
“I don’t think it changes the president’s decision for our 2,000 uniformed personnel to depart Syria,” he added.
Ankara also took time to weigh in on Trump's vague Twitter diplomacy.
"Strategic partners" should not communicate through social media, said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
The lira plummeted after Trump made his remarks on Sunday, as a reported 80,000 Turkish forces are on standby near the Syrian border.
"We have repeatedly said that we are never afraid of threats. Threatening Turkey economically will get you nowhere,” said Cavusoglu.
Cavusoglu added that Turkey was "not against" a "security zone" in Syria, as had been floated but not elaborated on by Trump in one of his Sunday tweets.
Pompeo's Middle East tour was cut short because of a family emergency requiring him to return to the United States.
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