White House Says Turkey Has ‘Right to Defend Itself’ From Kurds

by | Nov 23, 2022

White House Says Turkey Has ‘Right to Defend Itself’ From Kurds

by | Nov 23, 2022

FILE PHOTO: Kurdish soldiers with the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are seen at an undisclosed location in Syria.

The White House said Tuesday that Turkey has the “right to defend themselves” from Kurdish militant groups in northern Syria and Iraq following massive Turkish airstrikes in the region.

“Turkey does continue to suffer a legitimate terrorist threat, particularly to their south. They certainly have every right to defend themselves and their citizens,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

Turkey launched the strikes in response to a bombing in Istanbul that killed six people, which it blamed on the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) and its Syrian affiliates, including the US-backed SDF. The operations killed members of the SDF, and they reportedly responded by firing rockets into a Turkish district near the Syrian border.

Kirby’s only warning was that the Turkish assault could impact US and SDF operations against ISIS. He said the Turkish operation “might force a reaction by some of our SDF partners that would limit and constrain their ability to fight against ISIS…and we want to be able to keep the pressure on ISIS.”

The statement from Kirby marks a shift in the US approach to Turkey’s operations against Kurds in Syria. The US typically condemns them but is not doing so now, likely because it wants Turkey to approve Sweden and Finland’s NATO bids.

The State Department issued a short statement on the fighting between the two US allies on Monday that called for de-escalation. “We urge de-escalation in Syria to protect civilian life and support the common goal of defeating ISIS. We continue to oppose any uncoordinated military action in Iraq that violates Iraq’s sovereignty,” said State Department spokesman Ned Price.

This article was originally featured at Antiwar.com and is republished with permission.

Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com. Follow him on Twitter @decampdave.

View all posts

Our Books

Shop books published by the Libertarian Institute.

libetarian institute longsleeve shirt

Support via Amazon Smile

Our Books

15 books

Recent Articles

Recent

South Korean President Yoon To Resign

South Korean President Yoon To Resign

The party of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol says he will step aside after his failed attempt to invoke martial law last week.  People Power Party leader Han Dong Hoon explained that Yoon would resign sometime soon and would cease all official business...

read more
Trump Calls for Immediate Ceasefire in Ukraine

Trump Calls for Immediate Ceasefire in Ukraine

President-elect Donald Trump demanded an “immediate ceasefire and negotiations” to begin in Ukraine. Trump made the remarks on Truth Social shortly after meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. “Likewise, Zelenskyy and Ukraine would like to make a deal...

read more

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This