YPG/PYD biggest threat to Syria's future: Erdogan

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - The YPG/PYD terrorist organization poses the "biggest" threat to Syria, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in the capital Ankara on Monday.

"The PKK, and its extension the YPG/PYD, is the biggest threat to Syria's future. As long as the PKK/PYD presence in the country continues, neither Syria nor our region can find peace," Erdogan told a news conference after a trilateral meeting on Syria with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani.

Erdogan said Ankara, Moscow, and Tehran stressed that supporting terrorists under the pretext of fighting Daesh is "unacceptable" -- likely referring to U.S. support for the YPG/PYD, which it has rationalized using that pretext.

He added that the leaders have the "same sensitivity" on the importance of protecting Syria's territorial integrity.

Erdogan said Turkey cannot allow a terror corridor along its border with Syria, referring to the YPG/PYD presence there.

He added that Turkey's main aim is to ensure a "peace corridor" in northern Syria.