Oct 13, 2014 · ... miscommunication between the United States and its longtime ally Turkey, ... the use of the air bases but also about Turkey’s role in training ...
Turkey Denies Reports of Deal for Use of Its Bases in Fight Against Islamic State
Photo
A Syrian border town was hit by airstrikes Monday. Turkey said it was still in talks to allow its bases to be used for strikes.Credit
Aris Messinis/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
ISTANBUL — A day after American officials said Turkey
had agreed to allow its air bases to be used for operations against the
Islamic State, which they described as a deal that represented a
breakthrough in tense negotiations, Turkish officials said on Monday
that there was no deal yet, and that talks were still underway.
The Turkish comments represented another miscommunication between the United States and its longtime ally Turkey,
as President Obama pushes to strengthen an international coalition
against the militants that control a large area of both Syria and Iraq,
by securing a greater role for Turkey.
The
Turks have insisted that any broad support to the coalition is
dependent on the mission going beyond the Islamic State, also called ISIS
or ISIL, to also target the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad, which
Turkey has long opposed and blames for creating the conditions that led
to the rise of the extremists within Syria and Iraq.
“We
approach this issue from a comprehensive perspective, including safe
havens and a no-fly zone to be established in the region,” said an
official in the office of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking on
the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the
press.
Photo
Secretary of State John Kerry with Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu of Turkey last month in Ankara.Credit
Pool photo by Brendan Smialowski
The
official, who said that no deal over the use of air bases had been
completed, added, “Talks, therefore, continue as we look into things we
can do together while covering all these aspects.”
A
senior Defense Department official insisted on Monday that Turkey had
agreed in principle to the use of its bases. The official also sought to
tamp down reports of a rupture between the two allies.
“They
have agreed to some base usage, but the details of how it will be
executed are still being worked out,” said the official, who spoke on
the condition of anonymity because of pending negotiations.
As
part of an effort against Mr. Assad’s government, the Turks have
insisted on a no-fly zone in northern Syria, near the border with
Turkey, that would create a safe haven in which to arm and train
moderate rebels fighting against Mr. Assad and where an opposition
government could take root. The United States has largely opposed this —
although some within the government, especially at the State
Department, believe the idea should be given serious consideration —
because it would broaden Mr. Obama’s stated objective of focusing only
on the destruction of the Islamic State.
The
apparent disagreement between officials of both countries seemed to
reflect unresolved differences, still to be negotiated, on the exact
uses of Turkish air bases, whether for logistics or airstrikes. Turkey, a
NATO member, already allows the use of its base at Incirlik, in
southern Turkey, to fly surveillance drones. Turkey has agreed to a host
of other measures in the fight against the Islamic State, including
sharing intelligence, tightening border controls to halt the flow of
foreign fighters and taking part in an American-led program to arm and
train moderate Syrian rebels fighting against Mr. Assad’s government.
Speaking
in New York where he was meeting with United Nations officials,
Turkey’s foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, told the semiofficial
Anadolu Agency, “right now, we agree with the U.S. on some issues
related to the train-and-equip project.”
He added, “There is no decision made on Incirlik or on any other matter.”
The
latest tensions in the relationship between the United States and
Turkey came after two days of talks last week in Ankara, the Turkish
capital, between retired Gen. John R. Allen, Mr. Obama’s envoy to the
coalition against the Islamic State, and Turkish officials.
A
team of American military officials is expected to arrive in Ankara
this week for further talks, not just about the use of the air bases but
also about Turkey’s role in training the moderate Syrian rebels, a
program in which Turkey has agreed to participate.
“There
needs to be a new strategy in Syria, where a new power consisting only
of Syrians emerges to protect the Syrian people from IS and the regime,”
Mr. Davutoglu said in an interview over the weekend with Daily Sabah, a Turkish newspaper.
“The
solution lies in the creation of a third force in addition to the
Syrian regime and IS that represents the Syrian people and is made up of
Syrians from all factions and not foreign fighters,” Mr. Davutoglu
said.
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