The United States has no plans to form a “border security force” with its Kurdish allies in Syria and has to explain to Turkey if its intentions are misunderstood, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Thursday.
“We understand their reaction,” Tillerson said on Thursday night. “We have the right to explain this to them,” he said, expressing his regret over “because some comments from some people gave the wrong impression.”
The International Coalition Against Terrorism, led by Washington, said Sunday it was working on a 30,000-strong “border force” in northern Syria, half of which is part of the Syrian Democratic Forces, an alliance of Arab and Kurdish fighters on the front lines to fight the Islamic state. Ankara considers it an extension of the PKK fighting it.
The announcement immediately angered Ankara, and the Pentagon has sought to reassure her on Wednesday that it was not about forming a “new army” but of training “local security forces,” but Turkey considered the explanation inadequate.
“Unfortunately, all this has been misplaced and misinterpreted, some people have misinterpreted the subject,” Tillerson said on the flight to Washington after meetings in Canada and California.
We have told Turks what we are doing: we are working on the assumption that local elements will ensure security in the liberated areas, “he told reporters.
“It is only about intensifying training to prevent the organization of the Islamic state,” he said.
“Nothing has changed,” said Tillerson, who spoke Tuesday with his Turkish counterpart Mouloud Zhaoshoglu on the sidelines of a meeting on North Korea in Vancouver. “It has to be clarified with Turkey.”
