Contradictory Statements by US, Turkey About Afrin

Click to read the article in Turkish/Kurdish

In a press briefing held yesterday (March 15), in response to journalists asking “Turkish foreign minister [Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu] stated that Turkey and US agreed on Manbij, that the Syrian Kurdish fighters, YPG, are going to leave the city. Is that your understanding?”, Spokesperson for the US State Department Heather Nauert said:

“It is not our understanding. We have a lot of conversations that we’re having with the Turkish Government at this point.

“We had a day and a half or a day worth of meetings last week with Turkish Government officials. We’re still working to reach an agreement with Turkey at this point and we’re not done talking with them”.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, Çavuşoğlu said, “Turkish and US troops will ensure the security in Afrin after YPG has withdrawn. The two countries will escort withdrawal of the YPG”. (PT/TK)