Turkey will do ‘whatever it takes’ against Kurdish militia in Syria

War-weary Syria looks set for further conflict as rival blocs that include NATO allies Turkey and the US are poised to clash in the northeast of the country

Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan said his country will do “whatever it takes” to secure itself if Syria’s new government cannot address Turkish concerns about a US-allied Kurdish militia it views as terrorists.

Fidan told France 24 that Ankara wants Damascus to address the problem in line with Syria’s territorial unity, sovereignty, and integrity, adding that the YPG should be disbanded immediately, according to Reuters on December 22nd

The YPG, the group leading the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), is viewed by Ankara as an extension of the PKK, a group that has fought Turkey since the 1980s and designated a terror organisation by Turkey, the US and the EU.

READ: US diplomats head to Syria to meet new leadership

Hostilities between Turkey and these groups has increased in recent weeks following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad, with Turkey and allied militias in Syria capturing Manbij from the SDF on December 9th.

“If it doesn’t happen, we have to protect our own national security,” Fidan said, and when asked if that included military action, he replied “whatever it takes.”

Asked about comments by SDF commander Mazloum Abdi’s on the possibility of a negotiated solution with Ankara, Fidan said the group should seek such a settlement with Damascus, as there was “a new reality” in Syria now.

READ: US officials suspect Turkey plotting Syria invasion

“The new reality, hopefully, they will address these issues, but at the same time, (the) YPG/PKK, they know what we want. We don’t want to see any form of military threat to ourselves. Not the present one, but also the potential one,” he added.

Ankara has previously launched three military operations against this group in Syria already, and has demanded many times that NATO ally the US stop supporting them. The US regards the SDF as a key ally fighting against the Islamic State group.

Reuters