US bolsters ties with YPG with 2 airstrips in PYD towns
by Daily Sabah
ISTANBULMar 07, 2016 - 12:00 am GMT+3
by Daily Sabah
Mar 07, 2016 12:00 am
Washington continues to bolster its relations with the Syrian PKK-affiliate Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its People's Protection Units (YPG) militia in northern Syria, having completed the extension of an airstrip in YPG-controlled territory and continuing construction of an air base.
Quoting a military source from the YPG-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a report from the Irbil-based BasNews website said on Sunday that all construction near the oil-rich city of Rmeilan in Hasakah is nearly complete. U.S. military helicopters were reportedly using the airstrip in the area for logistics and deliveries.
Along with the airstrip in Rmelian, a new air base southeast of the PYD-controlled town of Kobani, across from the Turkish border, is under constructed with the aid of many U.S. experts and technicians.
A spokesman for the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said that they are not taking control of any airfields in Syria. "Our location and troop strength remains small and in keeping with what has been previously briefed by defense officials," he said in a statement. "That being said, U.S. forces in Syria are consistently looking for ways to increase efficiency for logistics and personnel recovery support."
Last month, Turkey responded to attacks from YPG-held areas around Azaz for almost a week, which Ankara said endanger Turkey's national security, including the capture of the Mennagh Air Base. Such moves are unsettling for Washington, with U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said on Feb. 17 that the country urges the YPG to avoid taking actions that will create tensions with Ankara and moderate opposition groups in Syria.
Ties between Washington and Ankara have been strained regarding the PYD and YPG, with the U.S. positioned in support of the organization under the premise that it is an effective partner in the fight against DAESH. However, according to Turkey, a NATO ally, the organization is the Syrian affiliate of the PKK, which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU.
The U.S. provided arms to the PYD in October, drawing heavy criticism from Ankara, as well as 50 tons of arms and ammunition which were dropped to the PYD in the northern Syrian province of Hasakah by the U.S. Air Force. The 112 pallets reportedly contained ammunition for M-16s and AK-47s.
Elsewhere, the profile page for the PYD on the United States National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) website that described the group as the Syrian affiliate of Kongra-Gel (KGK) has recently been taken down.
In February, U.S. President Barack Obama's special presidential envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL (DAESH), Brett McGurk, paid a visit to Kobani and held talks with PYD and YPG officials. The visit was the first declared trip to Syrian territory by an Obama administration official in three years.
After this move, in a conversation with journalists over the weekend on his return flight from a five-day visit to Latin America, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stated that the U.S. must decide who its regional partner is, Turkey or the terrorists in Syria.
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