The U.S.-led coalition carried out flights in support of Turkish forces at the request of Turkey near the Islamic State-controlled town of Al-Bab last week, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a briefing on Tuesday.
The US government is working closely with Turkey in its operations supporting "rebels" that fight the Islamic State in Syria as well as the Syrian Army, Cook said. He added the aircraft did not carry out air strikes, rather it was meant as a "visible show of force."
The US-led coalition against the Islamic State is now providing a show of air support for the first time to Turkish troops operating in Syria.
"The [Syrian] opposition forces that are with the support of the Turkish forces are carrying out a significant effort against ISIL [Islamic State] and we think that’s a good thing. We continue to talk to the government of Turkey about support for the operations in Al-Bab… We are coordinating carefully our actions against ISIL [Islamic State]… We would like to do everything we can to help Turkey in that effort," Cook stated. "The goal is to defeat ISIL and it is a goal that we and Turkey share."
