Turkey does not accept ‘crooked’ NATO relation with Kurdish forces in Syria: Erdogan

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that his country does not accept the relationship between some NATO members and the Kurdish forces in northeast Syria (Rojava), adding that they expect solidarity from allies in “combating terrorism.”

Erdogan said during a press conference on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Washington, DC, that some of Ankara’s allies have established relations with the People’s Protection Units (YPG) and its political wing the Democratic Union Party (PYD), which Turkey considers an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

“It is not possible for us to accept the crooked relationship that some of our allies have established especially with the PYD/YPG, the extension of the terrorist organization PKK in Syria," Erdogan said, adding that Ankara expects solidarity from its allies when it comes to “combating terrorism.”

“I reiterate my call here to abandon these flawed policies that harm the unity and integrity of the alliance,” he said.

The PKK is a Kurdish group that has waged an armed insurgency against the Turkish state for decades in the struggle for greater Kurdish rights and is designated a terrorist organization by Ankara. Turkey also considers the YPG as the Syrian front for the PKK.

Erdogan’s comments come amid efforts for rapprochement between Ankara and the Syrian government in Damascus. 

When the war erupted in Syria, Erdogan, then prime minister of Turkey, slammed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for committing violence against his own people. Erdogan demanded the removal of the Syrian president from power and labeled him a “terrorist.”

Turkey supported anti-Assad rebels in the early years of the civil war, especially in northwest Syria. However, when Russia intervened and President Vladimir Putin threw his support behind Assad, Erdogan began opposing the growing Kurdish dominance in northern Syria.

Earlier this month, Erdogan said that he might invite his long-time foe, Assad, to Turkey. 

Erdogan said in June there is no reason not to normalize relations with Assad. This remark came days after the Syrian president told a top Russian delegation of his “openness to all initiatives related to the relationship between Syria and Turkey, which are based on the sovereignty of the Syrian state over its entire territory,” according to a statement from his office released at the time.

Assad had previously conditioned any potential rapprochement on the full withdrawal of Turkish troops from Syria.

This also comes as Turkey has started a large-scale operation to eradicate the PKK in the border areas of the Kurdistan Region. 

Iraq’s National Security Council on Wednesday rejected Ankara’s “incursion” and military activities on the Kurdistan Region borders.

“The council emphasized that Turkey must adhere to the principles of good neighborliness and diplomatically engage with the Iraqi government for any security-related matters,” read a statement from Yehia Rasool, the military spokesperson of the Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani. 

Iraq labeled the PKK a banned organization earlier this year ahead of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s rare visit to the country in April. Baghdad and Ankara signed dozens of agreements during Erdogan’s visit which covered a range of issues, including security.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has yet to comment on the fresh escalations on the border, but its interior ministry told reporters on Tuesday that Baghdad, Erbil, and Ankara were discussing the matter.

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