Erdogan Lambasts U.S. over Support for Syrian Kurds

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday launched a bitter attack on NATO ally the United States over its support of Syrian Kurdish groups, saying it was creating a "pool of blood" in the region.

In an impassioned and sometimes angry address, Erdogan asked whether the United States was an ally or was working with groups Ankara lists as terror organizations.

Turkey considers the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its People's Protection Units (YPG) militia to be terror groups allied to Kurdish rebels inside Turkey, a position not shared by Washington.

"Hey America... As you have never recognized them (as terror groups) the region has turned into a pool of blood," Erdogan said.

"Hey America! How many times have we had to tell you?" he said. "Are you together with us or are you with the PYD and YPG terror groups?"

Erdogan launched the attack in one of his regular speeches at the presidential palace to loyal municipal leaders known as muhtars that have become a forum for his most vehemently anti-Western comments.

"Is there a difference between the PKK and the PYD? Is there a difference with the YPG?" growled Erdogan. "We have written proof!"

"Allies don't tell each other my enemy's enemy is my friend. You must have principles. But there are no principles here."

His remarks escalated a row between Washington and Ankara over the role of Kurdish fighters in the struggle against Islamic State (IS) jihadists in Syria.

The dispute also risks further complicating the search for a solution to Syria's five-year conflict, drawing a wedge between two key members of the anti-IS coalition and driving another nail into the coffin of a process of peace talks.

In a further twist, a Syrian Kurdish group on Wednesday opened a representation in Moscow, which is currently in the throes of a diplomatic crisis with Ankara and is working to tighten ties with the Kurds.

"This is a historical moment for the Kurdish people," claimed Merab Shamoyev, chairman of the International Union of Kurdish Public Associations, adding that those present at the ceremony had ties to the PYD.

Turkey on Tuesday summoned the U.S. envoy to Ankara in protest after the U.S. State Department said Washington did not recognize the PYD as a terror group and would continue to support its operations in Syria.

"Even the best of friends aren't going to agree on everything," State Department spokesman John Kirby said Monday.

"Kurdish fighters have been some of the most successful in going after Daesh (IS) inside Syria."

Ankara has also expressed outrage over a visit last week by U.S. presidential envoy Brett McGurk to the Syrian Kurdish town of Kobane where he met YPG fighters.

Turkey says the Syrian Kurdish groups are simply a branch of the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is recognized as a terror group by the United States, and has carried out a string of deadly attacks in Turkey in the last few months.

Can Acun, a researcher with the Ankara-based Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, said Turkey was facing a "serious crisis" with the United States on the issue.

"We don't know if the U.S. is using the Syrian Kurds for short term tactical reasons or in the long term. If it's the second, then bilateral relations will fray," he said.

Air strikes by the Syrian regime and its Russian allies have sent tens of thousands more people fleeing to the border with Turkey, which is already home to some 2.5 million refugees from Syria and hundreds of thousands from Iraq.

But Erdogan blasted the response from members of the United Nations, saying: "U.N., what are you useful for?"

"We have so far taken in three million people from Iraq and Syria and how many have you taken in? How many people has each country taken in? You are troubled by 300-500 people but we have taken three million."