Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed Ankara’s planned military operation in northern Syria and the war in Ukraine with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Erdogan’s office said on Monday.
Erdogan has said in recent days that Turkey will launch cross-border infiltration to create a 30-km-deep buffer zone against Kurdish militants in Syria. The Turkish president said he told Putin in a phone call that the border area was agreed in 2019 but was not implemented.
Ankara carried out an operation against People’s Protection Units or YPG in October 2019. Russia, the Syrian regime and the United States also have troops in the border area.
Turkey considers the YPG to be a terrorist group affiliated with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has waged an insurgency against Turkey since 1984, killing tens of thousands.
However, the YPG remains the backbone of US-led forces in the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria. The US is not happy with Turkey’s previous incursions into Syria.
Erdogan also told Putin that Turkey is ready to resume a role in ending the war in Ukraine, including participating in a possible “observational mechanism” between Ukraine, Russia and the United Nations, the statement said.
Talks held in Istanbul in March failed to make any progress, but Turkey, which has close ties with both Kyiv and Moscow, has repeatedly pitched itself as a potential mediator.
The Turkish President also called for taking steps to restore peace and confidence in Ukraine at the earliest.
In Washington, the National Security Council said that National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan had called Erdogan’s chief adviser Ibrahim Kalin to discuss both countries’ support for Ukraine but also to be careful about actions in Syria.
“Sullivan reiterated the importance of preserving existing ceasefire lines and avoiding tension in Syria to avoid any further instability,” National Security Council spokesman Adrienne Watson said.
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