Turkey’s radically new approach to Syria since President Recep Tayyip Erdogan replaced Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in May with his trusted acolyte Binali Yildirim is unfolding fast. Turkey’s military operation in northern Syria, named Operation Euphrates Shield, which includes Turkish-trained Free Syrian Army (FSA) elements, reflects the new climate prevailing in Ankara.

The United States has welcomed the Turkish-led liberation of Jarablus from the Islamic State (IS), to which the US Air Force also contributed. It is displeased, however, with Turkey’s operations south of Jarablus against the People’s Protection Units (YPG), the armed wing of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) in Syria.

The YPG is the main element of the US-supported Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which recently wrested the strategic city of Manbij, west of the Euphrates River, from IS. The continued presence of YPG fighters in Manbij is causing fresh tensions between Ankara and Washington.

Turkey says the PYD and YPG are terrorist groups linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been waging a separatist terror campaign against civilians and security personnel in Turkey. Ankara does not want an autonomous Kurdish region along its borders.