It is ‘imperative’ to fight ISIS in Syria, Blinken tells Turkey Magic Post

It is ‘imperative’ to fight ISIS in Syria, Blinken tells Turkey

 Magic Post

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Turkey on Friday it was “imperative” to combat the resurgence of the Islamic State (IS) militant group in Syria following the fall of Bashar al-Assad.

His remarks came after his meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara, as part of the second leg of his crisis tour of Syria following the fall of Assad’s government.

“Our country has worked very hard and given a lot for many years to ensure the elimination of the territorial caliphate of the Islamic State (IS), to ensure that this threat never returns,” Blinken said during a joint press conference.

“And it is imperative that we continue these efforts.”

In response, Fidan told him that Turkey was determined to ensure stability in Syria “as soon as possible” and prevent fighters from gaining a foothold there.

“Our priorities include ensuring stability in Syria as quickly as possible, preventing terrorism from gaining ground and preventing IS and the PKK from dominating there,” he said, referring to to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, which has been waging a decades-long insurgency against Turkey.

Blinken also discussed the issue with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after his arrival Thursday evening, with the two men meeting for more than an hour at Ankara airport, a U.S. official said.

Erdogan assured him that Turkey would never relax its fight against IS fighters in Syria, despite its operations against Kurdish fighters seen as essential to containing the extremists.

“Turkey will never allow any weakness to arise in the fight against ISIS,” Erdogan told him.

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