Turkey says it is ready to launch a new offensive in Syria

Turkey said on Tuesday (October 8th) that it is ready to launch a new offensive in Syria against a Kurdish militia, which US President Donald Trump has assured not to let go after hinting at the opposite.

Reinforcing the impression that an offensive against the People's Protection Units (YPG) was imminent, the Turkish Ministry of Defense said earlier in the day that "all preparations for an operation have been completed. ".

Ankara has transported new armored vehicles to its border with Syria. A convoy of dozens of vehicles was seen in the town of Akcakale, Sanliurfa province. Construction equipment, of various types, was also transported by this convoy sent to the border to reinforce the military units there, reported the Turkish state news agency Anadolu.

Donald Trump assures that the United States has not "abandoned" the Kurds

The tension in northeastern Syria has mounted a notch after the announcement by the White House on Sunday evening, in the wake of a telephone conversation between US President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The White House then claimed that the US military stationed in the area would be removed for a Turkish operation.

Accused in his own camp of releasing US allies, President Trump reoriented his speech on Monday saying he would "completely destroy the economy of Turkey" if it "exceeded the limits".

Donald Trump's message on Twitter

We are in the process of leaving Syria, but we are in the middle of the world. Likewise our relationship with Turkey, a NATO and Trading partner, has been very good. Turkey already has a large Kurdish population and fully ....

"We are leaving Syria, but we have absolutely not abandoned the Kurds who are great people and wonderful fighters," he said Tuesday in a tweet. "We help the Kurds financially [and by providing them] with weapons." But he also stressed that Turkey is a "major trading partner" of the United States and announced that he would welcome Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Washington on November 13.

According to the Turkish daily Hürriyet, an operation could begin in the coming days, the Turkish staff waiting for the withdrawal of US forces in this area to be completed.

With AFP