"If US really wants to sweep Daesh terrorists from Raqqa, it should proceed through Tel Abyad which is under PKK/PYD control, " Turkey indicates in a report
Turkey has issued a report which indicates the significance of Tel Abyad in the possible operation against the Daesh terrorists in Syria's Raqqa, saying that proceeding towards the Tel Abyad route is a criteria which will test the sincerity of United States
"If U.S really wants to sweep Daesh terrorists from Raqqa, it should proceed through Tel Abyad which is under the Kurdistan Workers' Party/ Democratic Union Party (PKK/PYD) control," Turkey indicated in the report.
"U.S. forces should try to reach Raqqa through Tel Abyad. If they use that route they would be only 20 kilometers away from the Daesh terrorists because Tel Abyad is currently under the control of PKK/PYD," the report said.
"The route suggested by Turkey would ensure the security of Jarabulus, Manbij, al-Bab, Tel Rifaat and Azaz as the security of these regions are more important than cleaning Raqqa of Daesh terrorists," it noted.
In the report, Turkey has reiterated its determination to join the operation against Raqqa. Al-Bab is being cleared of Daesh terrorists as part of Operation Euphrates Shield which has been underway for 170 days.
"The operation in Raqqa shouldn't ignore Russia and Iran's stance," report said.
The details of the planned Raqqa operation were also discussed by Turkish officials and the director of the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Mike Pompeo who paid a visit to Turkey on Thursday.
The participation of Turkey in the operation is a crucial step toward weakening the PKK/PYD terrorist organization, according to Prof. Dr. Taylan Arı, from Uludağ University.
Turkey has harshly criticized the inactivity of the anti-Daesh coalition, particularly the United States, which hasn't supported Turkey with promised airstrikes in al-Bab and has postponed the scheduled operation in Raqqa. Turkish officials say this inaction has made Daesh stronger against Turkey-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) soldiers.
Previously, Turkish military sources verified that the US didn't conduct airstrikes in support of Operation Euphrates Shield. The postponement of the Raqqa operation provided an advantage to Daesh terrorists against Turkish soldiers.
The U.S. not only postponed the Raqqa operation, but also suspended the Mosul operation which was being conducted with the support of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)-affiliated Democratic Union Party (PYD).
The anti-Daesh coalition is made up of 13 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Canada, Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands.
However, all of these countries have been inactive against Daesh since the Turkey-backed FSA launched Operation Euphrates Shield on August 24, 2016.
Operation Euphrates Shield was launched between the Turkish Armed Forces and the Free Syrian Army, with the aim to sweep Daesh from Syria, and has been running for 170 days.
Erdoğan previously said Manbij will be cleared of terrorists after the al-Bab operations have concluded.
