Turkey says US failed to report true content of Pompeo talks

US-TURKEY-DIPLOMACY US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meets with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu at the US Department of State in Washington, DC | AFP

Turkey accused the US State Department of making false claims after a meeting between top US and Turkish diplomats to discuss tense ties between the NATO allies.

Washington and Ankara are at odds over issues including US support for a Syrian Kurdish militia viewed as terrorists by Ankara and Turkey's purchase of a Russian missile system over US objections. US has provided ongoing support to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which heavily consists of PKK-affiliated People's Protection Units (YPG), despite Ankara's objections.

Pompeo pressed Cavsoglu about Turkey's plans to buy the S-400 missile defence system from Russia, which Washington has warned could put Ankara at risk of US sanctions, the State Department said in a statement. Under international law, Turkey says, it has the right to defend itself against threats to national security, including the danger posed by a "terror corridor" in northern Syria. The US wants Turkey to instead opt to buy the US Patriot system.

Turkish foreign ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said that the readout “not only fails to reflect the content of the meeting, but also contains matters that were not even raised during said meeting”.

Washington responded earlier this week by suspending Turkey's participation in the F-35 fighter-jet programme, in which Turkey has invested over USD 1 billion.

Two cross-border operations in northern Syria have been carried out by Turkey— Operation Euphrates Shield launched in August 2016 and Operation Olive Branch in January 2018. This was done in order to drive terrorist groups, including the YPG and IS, away from its borders.

Cavusoglu had earlier said that the US lacked a "clear strategy" in Syria, with different positions coming from various parts of the government. "There is no clear strategy, this is the problem," he added.

Cavusoglu had earlier indicated that Ankara does not have to choose between Russia and its NATO allies.