Turkish armed forces chief General Hulusi Akar said on Tuesday Turkey will not allow the Syrian Kurdish YPG group to receive support and said NATO should not differentiate between terrorist groups, state-run Anadolu agency reported. He was speaking at a NATO meeting in Brussels.
The US-led coalition is training a force expected to ensure border control in Syria, the Defense Post news website reported on Saturday, citing a coalition spokesman. The force is expected to be stuffed partly by veterans of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), affiliated with the YPG.
"We cannot and will not allow the terrorist organization, YPG, which has been proven as an extension of the PKK, to be supported and armed under the guise of it being an 'operational partner'," Akar said, as quoted by Anadolu news agency.
The Turkish military chief added that NATO should not give the preferential approach to any terrorist groups.
Following the coalition's announcement, Ankara has been indicating it might launch an offensive in Syria’s northern Kurdish-controlled Afrin.
The PKK, which has waged a decades-long armed conflict in Turkey, is designated a terrorist organization by Ankara, the United states, the European Union and NATO.
