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dpa
Istanbul
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he has not had a good start to relations with US President Joe Biden, accusing the US of sending arms to “terrorist” groups in Syria.
“I worked well with Bush Junior, Mr Obama, Mr Trump but I can’t say we had a good start with Mr Biden,” Erdogan told reporters in New York, according to Turkish state news agency Anadolu.
Erdogan is in the US on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and has not met Biden there.
The Turkish president alleged the US “has started carrying weapons, ammunition and equipment to terrorist organizations (in Syria).” Erdogan was referring to the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), a militia group designated by the Turkish government as a terrorist organization linked to the Kurdish insurgency within Turkey.
The YPG has been instrumental for the US and allied forces in fighting Islamic State in Syria.
Angry at Washington’s cooperation with YPG, whom it sees as a national threat, Ankara has captured towns along the Syrian border from the group in three major military operations since 2016.
US-Turkey ties were further strained by the latter’s purchase of Russian-made air defence systems.
Erdogan, however, says Ankara hopes to have “friendly” ties with the US given it is a NATO ally.
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24/09/2021
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