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France becomes Turkey’s newest bugbear as Kurds court Macron

Now that US forces are withdrawing from Syria, Turkey has turned its ire to France, which could play a bridging role between the Kurds, Moscow and Washington that could upset Turkish plans.
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - OCTOBER,27 (RUSSIA OUT) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and French President Emmanuel Macron (R) attend their joint press conference at the Summit on Syria, in Istanbul,Turkey, October,27,2018. Leaders of Germany, France, Russia and Turkey have gathered in Istanbul for a one-day summit on Syrian crisis. (Photo by Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Image

Turkey’s suspicions over purported Western plans in Syria have shown no signs of abating even after President Donald Trump announced he had ordered US troops to withdraw and pledged “a slow and highly coordinated” pullout in keeping with Ankara’s demands.

The new focus of Turkish ire is France, whose president, Emmanuel Macron, has lashed out at Trump’s decision, saying “an ally should be dependable.” The country could play a bridging role between the Kurds, Moscow and Washington that could upset Turkish plans or so many Kurds hope.

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