Turkey: Joint Patrols with U.S. to Begin Soon in Syrian Town

Turkey says joint patrols with U.S. forces will start soon in the strategic northern Syrian town of Manbij.

The patrols are part of a "road map" that Ankara and Washington agreed on in June to defuse tensions amid Turkish demands for the withdrawal of a U.S.-backed Kurdish militia that freed the town from the Islamic State group in 2016.

Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said Friday that "joint training and joint patrols will begin very soon" in Manbij.

Manbij has been a significant issue in strained relations between the two NATO allies. Turkey considers the U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish militia, the Kurdish People's Protection Units, or YPG, a terror group that is part of a Kurdish insurgency within Turkey.

Kalin said continued U.S. support for the Kurdish forces remains "a serious concern."