On Tuesday, the United States warned Turkey against launching any new military operation in northern Syria, stressing that such an escalation would endanger the lives of American soldiers deployed in the region.
On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that his country would soon launch a new military operation in northern Syria to create a “safe zone” with a depth of 30 km along its border with its southern neighbor.
On Tuesday, State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters that the United States was “deeply concerned” about the announcement.
“We condemn any escalation and support maintaining the current ceasefire lines,” he added.
Since 2016, Turkey has launched three military operations in Syria to drive out Syrian Kurdish fighters who allied with the United States in its campaign against ISIS.
Turkey launched its last military operation in Syria in October 2019, when US President Donald Trump announced that his country’s forces had accomplished their mission in Syria and would withdraw from that country.
The Turkish attack on that day sparked great anger in the United States, even among the allies of the Republican president, prompting his deputy, Mike Pence, to visit Turkey, where he concluded an agreement with Erdogan to stop the fighting.
“We expect Turkey to abide by the October 2019 joint statement,” Price said.
“We are aware of Turkey’s legitimate security concerns on its southern borders, but any new offensive will further undermine regional stability and endanger the US forces involved in the coalition campaign against ISIS,” he added.
The Turkish president’s statements about launching a new attack in Syria came at a time when he threatened to block the requests of Finland and Sweden to join NATO.
Turkey has long accused the two Scandinavian countries of harboring activists from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, the Kurdish separatist organization banned in Turkey.