Strained by American support for a terrorist group in Syria, Turkish relations with the US are close to breaking, warned Turkey’s foreign minister on Monday.
“Ties with the US are at very critical point. We will either fix these relations or they will break completely,” Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters in Istanbul on the sidelines of a Turkish-African meeting in Istanbul, Anadolu reported.
He added that he would discuss the problems in ties with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson during his “important” visit to Turkey this week as part of a regional tour.
Turkey’s expectations from US are “loud and clear,” said Cavusoglu.
“We don’t want any more promises, we want concrete steps. In order to discuss certain subjects with the US […] the missing trust needs to be restored,” he said.
“The reason for that missing trust is the US”
Mentioning the Kurdish People Protections Units (YPG) in Syria—the armed wing of the terrorist PKK Turkey is currently fighting in a cross-border operation in Syria’s Afrin—and the Fetullah Group (FETO), the group Turkey claims was behind a defeated 2016 coup in Turkey, he added:
“We’ve seen serious mistakes and wrongs from our ally the US on FETO, the YPG, and other subjects. The US didn’t keep the promises it gave. How trustworthy can a country which fails to keep its promises be?”
The PKK is listed as a terrorist group by the US, EU, and Turkey.
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