Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said former U.S. President Barack Obama deceived Turkey regarding the role of Syrian Kurdish militants in the fight against Islamic State, expressing hope that the new administration will have a different course.
Mr. Erdogan told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that Turkey had a pact with the U.S. regarding Syrian Kurdish YPG militias, but Mr. Obama deceived Turkey by working with Kurds in anti-ISIS efforts. Turkish president said it is unlikely that the current administration of President Donald J. Trump would go down a similar road.
The Turkish president said he told Mr. Trump on the phone on Tuesday that Ankara feels threatened by the Syrian Kurdish militants and Turkey considers them as terrorists. He added that he would discuss this issue in detail during his meeting with Mr. Trump in May.
President Erdogan also noted that he told Mr. Trump about a possibility to work with Russian President Vladimir Putin in fighting against ISIS. Mr. Trump reportedly told Mr. Erdogan that he would let teams work on this before taking any step.