Erdogan: Turkey will not participate in the attack on Raqqa
Turkey will not participate in the attack on the "Raqqa", the stronghold of ISIS in Syria, because the U.S.-led coalition will include the Kurdish rebels, which Turkey considers terrorists, said the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Erdogan made the comments on Thursday, referring to the Turkish citizens in Istanbul after returning to Turkey. "I saw that America is very sensitive to the operation in the "Rakka," - said Erdogan. "We cannot participate in transactions where there is a terrorist organization. We wish you the best." He also warned that Turkey will respond to any threat that she might face.
"America enters into transactions with them," he said of the Kurdish groups. "If the terrorist organizations will pose a threat to us, we will use our right to self-defence and to do all that is necessary. We ... to consult with anyone". The Kurds are an ethnic group in the middle East, which has never had a national state.
Foreign Minister of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu called for the resignation of the special representative of the United States in the international coalition against ISIS (organization banned in Russia) in Iraq and Syria, Brett Makhorka.
Meanwhile, the US state Department issued a statement which said that Mcguirk has the full support of the Secretary of state Rex Tillerson and the White house.
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