Turkey to cut U.S. access to airbase if Washington teams with Kurds

PanARMENIAN.Net - Ankara could forbid Washington from using its Incirlik airbase if the United States cooperates with the Kurdish forces, such as the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the Popular Defense Units (YPG), Sputnik reports.

The Yeni Safak newspaper reported on Wednesday, March 1, citing own sources, that Ankara could end the permission in case of cooperation between Washington and the Kurds during operations against the Islamic State terrorist group in the area of Raqqa.

The newspaper added that Ankara was also considering the possibility to close the country's airspace for U.S. aircraft.

The United States, along with several other countries, uses the Incirlik base for aircraft involved in the anti-IS campaign in Syria.

The city of Raqqa, which is the "capital" of the so-called caliphate proclaimed by IS, is a target for numerous groups fighting against extremists in Syria. Turkey and the Kurdish troops have voiced their plans to liberate the Daesh-occupied city.

Since 2011, Syria has been engulfed in a civil war, with government forces fighting against numerous opposition and terrorist groups, including al-Nusra Front and IS, banned in a range of countries.