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US promises Turkey role in Raqqa in surprise Ankara meeting

The United States has reached out to Turkey, which is fuming over US support for Kurdish-led forces in Syria, by sending its chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to meet with his Turkish counterpart in Ankara and discuss Raqqa.
U.S. President Barack Obama (R) and Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan (L) deliver remarks after their bilateral meeting alongside the G20 Summit, in Hangzhou, China September 4, 2016. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RTX2O1AM

US efforts to appease Turkey over its collaboration with Syrian Kurdish-led forces to take Raqqa, the self-declared capital of the Islamic State, appeared to have yielded some progress over the weekend following an unannounced visit by Gen. Joe Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to Ankara.

Following 4½ hours of talks with his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar, Dunford said, “The coalition and Turkey will work together on the long-term plan for seizing, holding and governing Raqqa.” The US general, who characterized Turkish-American ties as “excellent” further asserted, "We always knew the SDF wasn’t the solution for holding and governing Raqqa. What we are working on right now is to find the right mix of forces for the operation.”

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