Turkey Says Militants Pulling Out of Buffer Zone: Syria Update
Turkey Says Militants Pulling Out of Buffer Zone: Syria Update
(Bloomberg) -- Turkey is closely following the pullout of Kurdish fighters from the buffer zone it wants to create in Syria, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday.
Turkey gave the Kurdish YPG militia until late Tuesday to leave a narrow strip of territory in northeastern Syria under an agreement between Ankara and Washington last week.
Erdogan will meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin later in the day for a meeting that might dictate what happens next in Syria. Moscow has wielded major influence in the war-torn country since the Russian military intervened in late 2015 to swing the civil war in favor of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Here is a rundown of major events in Turkish local time since Sunday:
Key Developments
- Turkey gives Kurds until 10 p.m. local time Tuesday to leave 120-km strip of territory
- Turkey vows to target Kurdish militia if it doesn’t withdraw
- U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, Erdogan announced cease-fire deal in Ankara after marathon talks on Thursday
Assad Visits Troops Near Turkey Border (11:32 a.m.)
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad visited government troops outside the last major rebel bastion of Idlib near the Turkish border, according to the presidency’s Twitter account. It didn’t say when the visit to the town of Hobait took place.
Erdogan Says YPG Pullout Continues (11:15 a.m.)
More than 700 members of the Kurdish militant group YPG have so far withdrawn from the buffer zone Turkey wants to create, Erdogan said in Ankara. Around 1,200 to 1,300 militants still remain but their pullout continues, Erdogan said.
Speaking on the possibility of a meeting with EU leaders on Syria, Erdogan said he’d hold such a gathering only in Istanbul or other Turkish cities on the Syrian border or that they could meet during a NATO summit in December.
Trump Says Cease-Fire Between Turks, Kurds ‘Holding’ (7:30 p.m. Monday)
President Donald Trump said at a meeting of his Cabinet on Monday that a cease-fire “is holding” between Turkish and Kurdish forces in northern Syria, and that the Kurds are withdrawing from areas Erdogan has demanded as a buffer zone.
Trump also said that the U.S. never committed to indefinitely back the Kurds, American allies in the fight against Islamic State. “They’re no angels, but we helped the Kurds,” the president said.
The cease-fire with the Turks expires on Tuesday, and Erdogan has said the offensive will resume if Kurdish forces haven’t withdrawn. Trump said Erdogan committed to conduct his occupation of the border area safely, and that if Turkey engages in unspecified misbehavior, the U.S. will sanction the country and enact tariffs on its exports.
Trump also said he would work something out to provide the Kurds with cash, perhaps through the involvement of a U.S. oil company. “We’ve secured the oil,” he said. It wasn’t immediately clear what he meant.
Russia Wants Talks Under Decades-Old Pact (12:45 p.m.)
Russia favors direct contacts between Turkey and Syria based on a 1998 security accord, though there are no plans for such talks during Erdogan’s visit to Sochi on Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov tells reporters at news conference with Bulgarian counterpart Ekaterina Zaharieva.
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Says About ‘35 Hours’ Left for Withdrawal (9:56 a.m.)
“We have 35 hours left,” Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told a forum organized by state-run TRTWorld television in Istanbul on Monday. “If they don’t withdraw, our operation will start. This is our agreement with the U.S.”
Kurdish-Led SDF Says It Withdrew from Syrian Ras Al Ayn (6:01 p.m. Sunday)
SDF Forces started pulling back from the northern-bound city of Ras Al Ayn, according to a statement. Dozens of military vehicles were seen leaving with a medical convoy that entered the town on Sunday to transport the wounded.
Johnson, Erdogan Talk, Propose Meeting with Macron, Merkel (1:30 p.m.)
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Erdogan spoke by telephone about the Syrian situation, and proposed a further meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Turkey Says Soldier Killed by Kurdish Group in Cease-Fire Breach (10:10 a.m.)
A Turkish soldier was killed and another one was wounded in an attack with anti-tank and light weapons by Kurdish YPG militants in the border town of Tal Abyad on Sunday, Turkey’s defense ministry said. The troops returned fire in self-defense, it said, adding that Turkish troops had come under 20 attacks since it paused the operation under the agreement with the U.S.
Turkey Counters Kurds’ No-Safe-Passage Claim (10:40 p.m.)
Turkey denied preventing the evacuation of wounded following claims by Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that no safe corridor has been created.
“There has been absolutely no prevention, and coordinates that can be safely used have been completely relayed to U.S. military officials,” Turkey’s Defense Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.
A 39-vehicle convoy, mostly ambulances, “safely went in an and out of Ras al-Ayn today and evacuated the wounded,” according to the statement. “The issue is being closely coordinated with U.S. military officials.”
Erdogan Vows to Crush Kurdish Militia If They Don’t Withdraw (4:12 p.m.)
“The 120-hour pause on operations will end Tuesday night, we will continue crushing heads of terrorists if they don’t withdraw by then,” Erdogan told thousands of flag-waving supporters in the central Anatolian city of Kayseri on Saturday.
Erdogan also said he would discuss during his planned meeting with Russia’s Putin next week what to do about troops loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who have deployed to the border after striking a deal with the Kurds.
“There are regime forces under Russian protection in parts of our operation area. We will discuss it with Putin. We’ve to find a solution,” he said.
--With assistance from Taylan Bilgic and Selcan Hacaoglu.
To contact the reporter on this story: Onur Ant in Istanbul at oant@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Onur Ant at oant@bloomberg.net, ;Alaa Shahine at asalha@bloomberg.net, Amy Teibel, Mark Williams
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