After President Donald Trump announced May 8 that the United States will directly arm the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) and its allies in the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Washington has been busy trying to calm Turkish nerves. Turkey is angry because it considers the YPG an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been fighting Ankara for independence and autonomy since the 1980s.
The Turkish side has warned its US ally that there could be blowback from its decision to arm the YPG and SDF. Tellingly, while Turkey’s pro-government media outlets posted veiled threats in their May 11 headlines, hard-core secular opposition outlet Aydinlik called on the government to close Incirlik air base, a critical launch point for US-led air operations against the Islamic State in Syria, to NATO forces. Sozcu, another critic of the government, called for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to cancel his upcoming visit to Washington.
The US side seems aware of Turkish sensitivities. In a meeting in London with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim May 11, US Secretary of Defense James Mattis said that the United States was committed to Turkey’s security. Mattis had also sounded confident on a May 10 visit to Lithuania, saying that the United States would “work out any of Turkey’s concerns” to arm the YPG.
But can the Americans really assuage Turkish concerns over Trump’s decision to directly arm Syrian Kurds?
AL-MONITOR All-Access gives you unlimited access to all our journalism, the full Daily Briefing, exclusive interviews, premium newsletters, and live events — for less than $2/week.
