US opposes escalation in Syria after border strikes: State Department
The United States opposes any military action that destabilizes the situation in Syria, a State Department spokesperson said, amid an escalation in retaliatory strikes by Turkey and a Kurdish militia along the Syrian border.
Separately, Russia called on Turkey to show restraint in its use of “excessive” military force in Syria and to keep tensions from escalating, Russian news agencies cited a Russian envoy to Syria as saying on Tuesday.
The comments came after Turkey said the Syrian Kurdish YPG killed two people in mortar attacks from northern Syria on Monday, following Turkish air operations at the weekend and a deadly bomb attack in Istanbul a week earlier.
A child and a teacher were killed and six people were wounded when mortar bombs hit a border area in Turkey’s Gaziantep province. Turkey’s armed forces responded with jets again hitting targets in Syria, a senior security official said.
President Tayyip Erdogan has said operations would not be limited to an air campaign and may involve ground forces. Turkey has conducted several major military operations against the YPG and ISIS militants in northern Syria in recent years.
The US State Department spokesperson said Washington had communicated its serious concerns to Ankara about the impact of escalation on the goal of fighting ISIS.
“We have urged Turkey against such operations, just as we have urged our Syrian partners against attacks or escalation,” the spokesperson said in emailed responses to questions.
The United States has allied with the YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against ISIS in Syria, causing a deep rift with NATO ally Turkey.
Reuters
