The White House said Mr Obama and Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet on Sunday on the sidelines of a major economic summit.
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Carter’s comments and a written statement by the Pentagon earlier Monday were the first USA criticism of Turkey, a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation ally, since it launched a US -backed incursion into northern Syria to help Syrian rebels seize the town of Jarablus from the Islamic State group.
On the other hand, Turkish officials are not letting up on their desire to frame the Syrian Kurdish forces as terrorist entities (Reuters).
US Vice President Joe Biden made a visit to Turkey last week, during which he said Washington was looking to preserve the territorial integrity of Syria.
In an emailed statement, Turkish military officials said Syrian opposition forces were continuing their operations to clear IS-controlled areas.
The Turkish armed forces and the Free Syrian Army aim at not only liberating Jarabulus city but also Syrian Manbij city controlled by YPG and PYD.
The more they fight each other, the longer it will take them to combat ISIS?.
“After intensified negotiations, and under the auspices of the worldwide coalition under the leadership of the United States, and to curb the bloodshed of the innocents, we declare that we reached a temporary ceasefire. with the forces of the Turkish occupation”, the statement said. “YPG fighters maintain a significant presence along that area with their local allies”.
However, YPG forces insist that they have already withdrawn to the east of the Euphrates in line with U.S. and Turkish demands.
While Turkey publicly cast the campaign as a joint operation with the US -led military coalition, the first airstrikes carried out by Turkish jets on Jarablus were done unilaterally, not under the coalition umbrella. “We call on all armed actors to stand down”.
Turkey, which is fighting a Kurdish insurgency at home, has openly said the operation dubbed “Euphrates Shield” has a dual goal of driving away Islamic State and preventing Kurdish forces extending their areas of control along the Turkish border.
“If they (Turkey) want to fight through (into Manbij) they’ll take more casualties”, he said calling the M60 tanks deployed by Turkey “museum pieces” that are vulnerable to roadside bombs. The White House said a continued Turkish push would complicate the fight against Islamic State.
Obama will discuss with the Turkish leader the circumstances in the country since the attempted coup, the campaign against the Islamic State group, Syria, and the refugee crisis, Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes told reporters.
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Syria’s government has condemned the Turkish incursion but has stayed out of the conflict.
