Rojava conflict

In one of my previous columns I described the relationship between Turkey and the U.S. as a "pathological partnership." I was referring to the hostile attitude against Turkey and criticizing American policy of arming and supporting groups affiliated to the terrorist PKK, like the YPG in Syria.

Turkey considers every support given to the PYD and YPG as a direct or indirect support to the illegal PKK, the country's presidential aide said on Nov. 7.

Four YPG members were killed after Turkish forces fired howitzer shells across the border into Syria's Ayn al Arab region, state-run Anadolu Agency said on Oct. 31.

The U.S. State Department omitted the PYD/YPG from its 2017 Country Reports on Terrorism, which was released Sept. 19.

A new report of Germany's domestic intelligence agency has described the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and its Syrian affiliates, the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the People's Protection Units (YPG) as "sister organizations."

Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), the U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish party in control of northeastern Syria, is prepared to hold talks with the Syrian government over the future of the area, senior Kurdish officials said on June 6.

A German national suspected of links to the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) was arrested in southeastern Turkey on March 27, security sources said.

Anti-American sentiments in the Turkish public have recently hit the roof because of the U.S.’ support for the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Syria, the Turkish president has said, amid the two countries’s ongoing talks that aim to ease the severely strained bilateral ties.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Feb. 15 that the United States has “never given heavy arms” to the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) and there is therefore “nothing to take back.”

Turkey’s Interior Ministry has added former Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) co-leader Salih Muslim and the leader of an outlawed pro-Bashar al-Assad organization, Mihraç Ural, to its “wanted terrorists” list along with several new names.