Turkey
Erdoğan: Turkey will resume its assault in northern Syria “with determination” when the U.S.-brokered ceasefire expires on Tuesday if all Kurdish forces have not withdrawn from the Syria-Turkey border region.
While America prefers “peace to war,” says U.S. secretary of state, “kinetic or military action” against NATO ally Turkey is on the table in connection with the crisis in northern Syria.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the U.S.-Israel alliance is “as strong as it has ever been,” and that the two discussed “all the efforts we’ve made to push back against the threat not only to Israel, but to the region and the world from the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
“We have been watching the unfolding events in Syria regarding the Kurdish community with horror and anguish,” said David Harris, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, which is planning to hold a solidarity rally in New York for the Syrian Kurds.
Sanctions would be removed once a permanent ceasefire takes effect on the condition that Turkey fight ISIS and help secure ISIS prisoners.
“Broadly speaking, the rest of America’s allies in the region are likely wondering whether they, too, could be cast aside this easily. This decision does not reflect well on American foreign policy,” says Jonathan Schanzer, senior vice president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
“The bank’s audacious conduct was supported and protected by high-ranking Turkish government officials, some of whom received millions of dollars in bribes to promote and protect the scheme,” said U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, Geoffrey Berman.
Afterwards, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected to visit Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss regional security and the U.S. withdrawal from Syria.
“We cannot allow the Russians to continue to grow in influence by growing on the world stage,” said New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker.
Hundreds of protesters decry the aggression by Turkey and demand that the Israeli government provide humanitarian aid to Kurdish forces.
Sanctions target Turkey’s defense, interior and energy ministries • U.S. also raises tariffs on Turkish steel imports to 50 percent and cancels negotiations on “$100 billion” trade deal.
According to Israeli intelligence expert Brig. Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser, while events in northeast Syria are still at an early stage, there’s already a lot to worry about, from the resurgence of ISIS to Iran exploiting the situation to create a land corridor.
