The
President spoke today by phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan about the situation in Syria and U.S.-Turkish cooperation in the
fight against terrorism.
The
President condemned and offered condolences for the February 17
terrorist attack in Ankara, which killed and wounded both military
personnel and civilians, and the February 18 terrorist attack against a
Turkish military convoy in Diyarbakir Province.
President
Obama expressed concern about recent Syrian regime advances in
northwest Syria and urgently called for a halt to actions that heighten
tensions with Turkey and with moderate opposition forces in northern
Syria, and undermine our collective efforts in northern
Syria to degrade and defeat ISIL.
President Obama stressed that YPG
forces should not seek to exploit circumstances in this area to seize
additional territory, and urged Turkey to show reciprocal restraint by
ceasing artillery strikes in the area. He emphasized
the unwavering commitment of the United States to Turkey’s national
security as a NATO Ally.
The two leaders expressed their support for
the understanding reached in Munich last week on the cessation of
hostilities in Syria and called on Russia and the Assad
regime to halt airstrikes against moderate opposition forces.
The
leaders pledged to deepen cooperation in the fight against all forms of
terrorism, including the PKK, and reiterated their shared goal of
degrading and ultimately destroying ISIL.
Source: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary
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