While visiting US officials continued to discuss Turkish-US cooperation against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and pushed Turkey further for expanded access to İncirlik Air Base on Thursday, Ankara reportedly agreed to allow the two armed US drones deployed at İncirlik to be used against ISIS.
Gen. John Allen, the US special presidential envoy for the global coalition to counter ISIL and US Department of Defense Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Christine Wormuth, along with a large delegation from the Pentagon, have been in Ankara this past week, meeting with their Turkish counterparts, including Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioğlu.
The Turkish and US delegations had an eight-hour-long meeting on Tuesday and continued their discussion on Wednesday and Thursday.
The US delegation's meeting with their Turkish counterparts and their discussion of mutual efforts as part of a broad coalition to degrade and destroy ISIS were called “constructive” in a statement issued by the US Embassy in Ankara on Wednesday.
Ankara will let the US armed drones that are deployed at İncirlik Air Base be used against ISIL, the Cumhuriyet daily reported on Thursday. Speaking to the A Haber TV channel in late June, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu talked about the presence of armed US drones at İncirlik Air Base, adding that the drones were being used for gathering intelligence and that it was natural that they are armed, given the threats in the region. According to Cumhuriyet, the US also asked for access to the military bases in Diyarbakır and Batman for logistical purposes during the meetings between Turkish and US delegations.
Turkey and the US are close to a deal on using İncirlik Air Base, but Ankara wants the US to support the Syrian opposition, especially around Aleppo, as a precondition, Cumhuriyet reported.
Allen's visit to Turkey came amid discussion in Turkey about the possibility of a Turkish military incursion into Syria to prevent Kurdish advances in the north of Syria. Syria's pro-Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) forces have been successful against ISIL militants in Tel Abyad in the north.
Turkish officials also told their US counterparts that the train and equip program should include the fight against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime, according to Cumhuriyet. If the US doesn't include Assad in the equation, then the Syrian opposition members don't really want to be part of the train and equip program, Ankara said. Turkish officials also told the US delegation that in the event of a coalition military operation that includes İncirlik they will not be taking any financial responsibility due to the large number of Syrian refugees Turkey is already hosting.
The Turkish delegation said refugee return to Tel Abyad is essential.
The US officials reiterated that eliminating ISIS is their priority, adding that the PYD is very effective in the fight against ISIS.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan recently said that Turkey will not allow an independent Kurdish state in the north of Syria. After Kurdish advances against ISIS, the Turkish military was ordered by the acting AK Party-led government to take extra security measures, including a possible cross-border operation into Syria, and prevent a new refugee flow toward Turkey.
The US administration does not support the creation of a safe zone that may or may not be supported by a no-fly zone and Gen. Allen reiterated this position to the Turkish officials during the meeting.
Turkey has been pushing for a safe zone, particularly over the last week, but the US officials repeated that from the perspective of the coalition forces, there is no need for the establishment of a safe zone. Turkey has been reinforcing its military presence along the Syrian border since last week, deploying a number of tanks and anti-aircraft missiles. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu on Friday ruled out an immediate incursion into Syria, adding that Turkey would only respond if its border security was threatened.
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