An official website of the United States Government 
Here's how you know

Official websites use .gov

.gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS

A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Turkey’s Assault on Kurdish Fighters Concerns United States, Officials Say

You have accessed part of a historical collection on defense.gov. Some of the information contained within may be outdated and links may not function. Please contact the DOD Webmaster with any questions.

As Turkey continues its attack on Kurdish forces along the Syrian border town of Afrin, the Defense Department says the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria is the common threat in the region, chief Pentagon spokesperson Dana W. White told reporters today.

Dana White, chief Pentagon spokesperson, and Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., the Joint Staff director, brief reporters at the Pentagon.
Dana White, chief Pentagon spokesperson, and Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., the Joint Staff director, brief reporters at the Pentagon, Jan. 25, 2018. DoD photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Kathryn E. Holm
Dana White, chief Pentagon spokesperson, and Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., the Joint Staff director, brief reporters at the Pentagon.
Brief Reporters
Dana White, chief Pentagon spokesperson, and Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., the Joint Staff director, brief reporters at the Pentagon, Jan. 25, 2018. DoD photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Kathryn E. Holm
Photo By: Petty Officer 1st Class Kathryn E. Holm
VIRIN: 180125-D-SH953-0197

Published reports say Turkey launched the Afrin military operation Jan. 20.

“[We] are working very closely with Turkey,” White said. “They are a NATO ally, and they have legitimate security concerns, so we’re going to continue to engage with them. It’s very important for all parties to remember that the common threat is ISIS, and we need all parties to focus on that mission.”

Inducing Friction

“Turkish operations in Ephraim and all operations in Ephraim that have the effect of inducing friction into the equation, of making it hard to focus on why we’re in Syria -- which is the defeat of ISIS in the Euphrates River valley -- are a negative thing,” Joint Staff Director Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. said.

“[We] also recognize Turkey has a legitimate national security interest and they’re very close to the problem. They’re the only NATO ally that actually has an active insurgency operating on their territory, so we understand all of those things,” the general said.

McKenzie emphasized that the United States has not trained or provided equipment for any of the Kurds in the Ephraim pocket, adding, “We’re focused on the Euphrates River valley operations to the south and to the east.”

The United States is trying hard to accommodate Turkey’s national security interests with the reasons why the U.S. military is in Syria, the general said.

Continuing Discussions

“And we think to a large degree, there’s overlap,” he added. “There [are] certainly areas that we disagree with, but we think we have an opportunity to perhaps come together and those discussions are continuing.”

The situation between Turkey and Kurdish fighters is a “distraction,” White said. “We have to focus as allies on the mission at hand,” she added, “and that’s defeating ISIS.”

The United States is helping Turkey with its active insurgency, she said. “We’re talking to them about those security concerns. We take them very seriously.”

But again noting that the common threat is ISIS, she said, the job is not done. “[We] need to get everyone focused on that,” she added. “And we will continue to talk to Turkey. We ask that Turkey de-escalate. But again, the focus, the priority for us, is to defeat ISIS.”

(Follow Terri Moon Cronk on Twitter: @MoonCronkDoD)

Related Stories