Turkish opposition head denounces Trump threats

By Mehmet Tosun

ANKARA (AA) - The leader of Turkey’s opposition Republican People's (CHP) Party on Tuesday slammed U.S. President Donald Trump's recent tweets threatening Turkey.

"Nobody can threaten the Turkish Republic like a street bully," Kemal Kilicdaroglu said during an announcement of mayoral candidates in the capital Ankara.

On Sunday, Trump threatened to "devastate Turkey economically if they hit Kurds," conflating "Kurds" with the terrorist PKK/YPG, a conflation that Turkey has repeatedly criticized.

Following the surprise announcement in December that U.S. forces would leave Syria, U.S. officials said the withdrawal was conditional on Turkey not attacking the "Kurds," meaning the terrorist PKK/YPG.

Turkish officials blasted the U.S. conflation of "Kurds" with the terror group, saying an expected Turkish operation in Syria will target a terrorist group which threatens Arabs, Turkmens, and Kurds in Syria alike.

In its 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK has taken some 40,000 lives. The PKK/PYD/YPG is its Syrian branch.