Turkish political parties are supporting Turkey's war against terrorism in northern Syria and highlighted that Turkey will not bow down to any threats.
Speaking at the Nationalist Movement Party's (MHP) weekly group meeting Tuesday, Chairman Devlet Bahçeli stated that "Turkey will not take orders or permission from anyone" in its fight against terrorism.
Bahçeli was referring to the tweet by Trump in which he said on Monday, "Starting the long overdue pullout from Syria while hitting the little remaining [Daesh] territorial caliphate hard, and from many directions. Will attack again from existing nearby base if it reforms. Will devastate Turkey economically if they hit Kurds. Create 20 mile safe zone."
Officials in Ankara strongly rejected the statements stressing that the U.S. has been equating Kurdish people with a terrorist group.
Bahçeli said that now it became a necessity for Turkey to launch an operation east of the Euphrates pointing to the ongoing efforts for establishing a quasi-state.
Turkey has long been signaling an operation east of the Euphrates in order to eliminate terror threats along its borders. Furthermore, prior to the U.S.' announcement to withdraw from Syria, Turkey's operation was imminent. Following the move of the U.S., Turkey announced that the operation will be on hold, yet stressed that it will never shy away from targeting the terrorists in the region.
Commenting on the issue, Meral Akşener, the chairwoman of the Good Party (İP), underlined during her party's group meeting that, "Turkey has not been fighting against the Kurds but the terrorists. Turkey has always open its arms to the oppressed who hit the roads following the chaos in the Middle East."
She stressed that Turkey never slaughtered or attacked the Kurds. "If Turkey enters the region it would be for targeting the terrorists threatening its national security," Akşener said.
Ankara has long been underlining that the PKK-affiliated People's Protection Units (YPG) poses grave threats to the country's national's security. Yet, its concerns have never been alleviated by its ally, the U.S., which instead opted to provide heavy arms to the terrorist group.
Turkey also repeatedly warned its allies about spreading misinformation that the country targets Kurdish people. Ankara has been highlighting that the YPG is a threat targeting Kurdish people as well.
The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu also criticized the remarks by Trump Wednesday. He stressed during the meeting of its candidate presentation at the Congresium in Ankara that "no one can threaten Turkey using the language of a bully."