Obama reaffirms support for Turkey
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region--Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed that U.S. President Barack Obama has reaffirmed his country's support for Turkey after a one-hour twenty minute phone conversation between the two leaders on Friday.
Obama said, according to AFP, that Turkey has the right of self-defense and that he shares Ankara's concern about Syrian Kurdish advances against opposition forces in northwestern Syria, an action which has led to Ankara repeatedly firing artillery at Syrian Kurdish positions over the course of the last week.
Obama also urged Erdogan to "show reciprocal restraint".
The U.S. President gave his condolences to Erdogan over the Wednesday bombing in Ankara which left 28 people dead.
The U.S. State Department denied Erdogan's claim, made on Friday, that the Syrian Kurds had used weapons provided by the United States against the Turks saying that Washington had not "provided any weapons of any kind" to them.
The Turkish government has officially blamed the YPG for the Ankara attack on Wednesday leading to renewed anger and resentment against Washington for not declaring the YPG a terrorist organization as it has done for years with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a group Turkey argues is inextricably tied to the YPG.
Obama said, according to AFP, that Turkey has the right of self-defense and that he shares Ankara's concern about Syrian Kurdish advances against opposition forces in northwestern Syria, an action which has led to Ankara repeatedly firing artillery at Syrian Kurdish positions over the course of the last week.
Obama also urged Erdogan to "show reciprocal restraint".
The U.S. President gave his condolences to Erdogan over the Wednesday bombing in Ankara which left 28 people dead.
The U.S. State Department denied Erdogan's claim, made on Friday, that the Syrian Kurds had used weapons provided by the United States against the Turks saying that Washington had not "provided any weapons of any kind" to them.
The Turkish government has officially blamed the YPG for the Ankara attack on Wednesday leading to renewed anger and resentment against Washington for not declaring the YPG a terrorist organization as it has done for years with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a group Turkey argues is inextricably tied to the YPG.