Turkey says White House statement on Erdogan-Trump phone call ‘not true’

Turkey says White House statement on Erdogan-Trump phone call ‘not true’
Thu Jan 25, 2018 12:54:16

The White House’s written statement differs from what was actually discussed in a phone conversation between the Turkish and U.S. presidents late on Jan. 24, according to Turkish sources.

(Hurriyetdailynews) -- “The readout issued by the White House does not accurately reflect the content of President [Recep Tayyip] Erdoğan’s phone call with President [Donald] Trump,” said the sources.

“President Trump did not share any ‘concerns [about] escalating violence’ with regard to the ongoing military operation in Afrin. The two leaders’ discussion of ‘Operation Olive Branch’ was limited to an exchange of views,” they added.

During the conversation, Trump discussed restricting the operation in Afrin to a certain time limit and avoiding any close combat in Manbij, due to the presence of U.S. soldiers in the region, the sources added.

The Turkish sources also stressed that Trump did not use the words “destructive and false rhetoric coming from Turkey.”

“In response to President Erdoğan’s call on the United States to end the delivery of weapons to the [Democratic Union Party] PYD-YPG, President Trump said that his country no longer supplied the group with weapons and pledged not to resume the weapons delivery in the future,” the sources added.

According to a White House statement earlier, Trump “urged Turkey to de-escalate, limit its military actions, and avoid civilian casualties and increases to displaced persons and refugees.”

“He urged Turkey to exercise caution and to avoid any actions that might risk conflict between Turkish and American forces,” it said, adding that he “expressed concern about the destructive and false anti-American rhetoric emanating from Turkey.”

(File photo: AP)

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