Turkey threatens Syria invasion as US sanctions loom
A breakthrough in the diplomatic dispute sparked by Turkey’s purchase of an advanced Russian missile system and Washington’s support for Syrian Kurdish militia continues to elude the NATO allies.
Tensions between NATO allies Turkey and the United States continue to simmer this week as Ankara uses the threat of an incursion into Syria and Washington weighs economic sanctions to pressure each other to step back from the brink of a diplomatic crisis.
Turkey’s National Security Council (MGK) will meet on Tuesday to discuss a slate of issues dividing the NATO allies, reported CNN Turk. On the agenda is Ankara’s purchase of a Russian antiaircraft system that Washington says will undermine NATO security and the US decision to kick Turkey out of its F-35 fighter jet program in response to the $2.5 billion acquisition from Russia.
The MGK, which brings together President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his senior military commanders, will also weigh a potential military operation in northeast Syria, where US special forces remain alongside their Syrian Kurdish allies who Turkey considers a terrorist network, the broadcaster reported. Turkey has been threatening an operation since last year.
Erdogan has shown little appetite for compromise, despite the risk that onerous US sanctions required by Congress for entities that buy Russian military hardware could undermine a weak recovery in Turkey’s $750 billion economy. He appears to be betting that the United States will blink before imposing harsh penalties for fear it could wreck the 70-year-old alliance.
