In Syria, US did its part: Turkey's Erdogan

By Muhammet Emin Avundukluoglu

ANKARA (AA) - The U.S. has done its part by deciding to withdraw its troops from Syria, Turkey’s president said on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said they are focusing more on the announced U.S. troop withdrawal than the French president’s statement that French soldiers will stay.

We are continuing our cooperation with U.S. President Donald Trump on Syria, Erdogan said.

He added: "America has done its part.”

He also said arrangements are being made for a possible meeting between him and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Erdogan has signaled that a cross-border operation against the terrorist PYD/YPG in Syria will happen soon, possibly including areas where U.S. troops currently are. Since 2016, Ankara has carried out two similar military operations in northern Syria.

Trump last week made the surprise announcement that the U.S. would withdraw its troops from Syria. His decision followed a phone call with Erdogan in which the two leaders agreed on the need for more effective coordination over the civil war-torn country.

Erdogan also said that they would declared 2019 the Year of Gobeklitepe in honor of the 12,000-year-old temple in the southeastern Sanliurfa province, the world’s oldest.

Gobeklitepe was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List this list this June.