Erdogan: No one can establish new state in north Syria

By Ahmet Sait Akcay

ANKARA (AA) - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday said no one could dare to establish a new state in northern Syria, warning that any such effort would be “useless”.

In his remarks at a meeting with local administrators known as mukhtars at the Presidential Complex in capital Ankara, Erdogan said: “Those who are willing to set up a terror passage in northern Syria right now … those areas used to be included [in Turkey’s] national pact borders [also known as Misak-i-Milli].

“Do not forget this sensibility. … No one can dare to establish a new state there. They will pay the price for it, if need be.”

He said Turkey could not be a means for the U.S.’ incoherent policies, and neither could it be a country that paid the price for inadequacy that the U.S. itself had demonstrated regarding developments in the region.

Turkey-U.S. relations strained over the latter's support for the PKK/PYD terror group's presence and arming of the group in the region.