US to step aside for Turkish offensive in Syria
(VOVWORLD) - The White House said Sunday that US forces in northeast Syria will move aside ahead of an expected Turkish offensive, essentially abandoning Kurdish fighters who fought alongside American forces in the years-long battle to defeat Islamic State militants.
Turkish and US soldiers patrol together in Syria. (Photo: AFP/ VNA)
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US troops "will not support or be involved in the operation" and "will no longer be in the immediate area," in northern Syria, White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in an unusual late-Sunday statement that was silent on the fate of the Kurds. A senior US official said Sunday that American troops will pull back from the security zone in northeastern Syria, where they have been working with Turkish troops, to an unspecified, removed location. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan showed his disappointment as the US move is contrary to the agreement on setting up a security zone in northeastern Syria reached between the two sides.