US President Donald Trump has said the United States has ended its involvement in wars and military operations in northern Syria and has vowed to wipe out Turkey's economy if its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, decides to wipe out the Kurds.
Trump told a news conference late Wednesday that he had spoken to several European officials about the handover of ISIS prisoners held by Kurdish militants in northern Syria, but they had refused.
He stressed that his country had defeated the organization and transferred a number of its most dangerous fighters out of Syria.
For his part, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in an interview with the US network "BPS" yesterday that Washington did not give the green light for Turkey to carry out its military operation in Syria, but added that Ankara has "legitimate security concerns" and that Trump has made a decision To keep American soldiers out of harm's way. "
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham warned against the entry of Turkish troops into northern Syria, saying that this would cause IS to re-emerge.
He said that the Turkish government does not have a green light to enter northern Syria, pointing out that there is strong bipartisan opposition in Congress to the Turkish attack, and that the Turks should consider it a red line and not cross it.
Graham urged the US president to reverse his decision and change the US troop withdrawal plan. He said there was still time to return to the concept of a safe zone, and vowed to lead efforts in Congress to make Erdogan "pay a heavy price" for the operation.
Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen said in a tweet that a bipartisan bill is being finalized to impose sanctions on Turkey. He said Ankara should "pay a heavy price for an attack against Syrian Kurdish partners."
Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, in a tweet, wrote that the Turkish attack "could give al-Qaeda and Iran a new foothold in the region."