The Turkish President's comments have come amid the military's fierce offensive against Islamist jihadists in the fight for the Syrian town of Al-Bab. The US State Department has rejected the accusations as "ludicrous."
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Altan
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday accused the West of breaking its promises on Syria and accused the US-led coalition of backing terror groups, including the so-called "Islamic State" (IS) jihadist group.
"They (the West) are supporting all the terror groups -- the YPG, PYD but also including Daesh (IS)," Erdogan said at a conference alongside visiting Guinean President Alpha Conde. "It's quite clear, perfectly obvious," he said, adding that Ankara had could readily provide photographic and video evidence.
The US has worked with the Kurdish Peoples' Protection Units (YPG) and Democratic Union Party (PYD) on the ground in Syria, groups Ankara recognizes as terror organizations. However, US State Department spokesman Mark Toner staunchly denied that it has supported IS, dismissing Erdogan's accusations as "ludicrous."
Turkey's president had made similar claims in November during a visit to Pakistan, where he alleged that "the West stands by Daesh," adding that IS was using Western-made weapons.
Turkey's bloody battle for Al-Bab
Erdogan's comments come amid Turkey's major incursion inside Syria to combat IS and Kurdish militia forces. Its military has met fierce resistance on its quest to capture the Syrian town of Al-Bab, located some 30 kilometers (18 miles) south of the Turkish border, from IS militants.
At least 37 Turkish soldiers have died since Ankara launched its offensive into Syria in August. However, casualty figures have risen sharply recently with the Turkish Armed Forces reportedly suffering 16 causalities on December 21 in the fight for Al-Bab.
Ankara is backing Syrian fighters as part of its incursion against IS militants in the town of Al-Bab.Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Ghaloun
Erdogan calls for Saudi Arabia and Qatar to join Syria peace talks
Erdogan said he wants Saudi Arabia and Qatar to partake in next month's Syria talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana. The Turkish President said that the two states had "shown goodwill and given support" to Syria.
After Turkey, Russia and Iran brokered a temporary ceasefire deal for the evacuation of civilians and militants from the besieged city of Aleppo, the three states have agreed to hold talks on permanent ceasefire agreement.
Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are among the main backers of rebel groups fighting to topple Syrian President Bashar Assad. Russia and Iran, meanwhile, are the Syrian government's key allies in the devastating five-year civil war, which has seen more than 300,000 people killed and half the population displaced.
However, Erdogan warned that Turkey would withdraw from the talks if any "terror organizations" are invited, referring to Syrian Kurdish military groups aligned with Kurdistan Workers' Party, a nationalist insurgency group in Turkey.
dm/kl (AP, AFP, Reuters)
How the Syrian civil war began - and gave 'Islamic State' room to grow
Although the emergence of "IS" prompted international intervention in Syria, the jihadist group entered the conflict late in the game. DW examines how the war created space for this terrorist group to expand.
Image: AP
The "Arab Spring" effect
In 2011, as regimes crumble across the region, tens of thousands of Syrians take to the streets to protest against corruption, high unemployment and soaring food prices. The Syrian government responds with live ammunition, claiming some 400 lives by May.
Image: dapd
Condemnation without consensus
At the urging of Western countries, the UN Security Council condemns the violent crackdown. The EU and US implement an arms embargo, visa bans and asset freezes in the months that follow. With the backing of the Arab League, calls eventually grow for the Syrian president's departure. But not all UN members agree with this demand.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J. Szenes
Assad refuses to back down
Bashar al-Assad - who has been in power since the death of his father in 2000 - sees his reputation wane with the continuing unrest. He refuses to end decades-long emergency rule, which allows for surveillance and interrogation. Russia backs its ally, supplying weapons and vetoing UN resolutions on Syria multiple times.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Y. Badawi
The opposition gets organized
By the end of the year, human rights groups and the UN have evidence of human rights abuses. Civilians and military deserters are slowly beginning to organize themselves to fight back against government forces, which have been targeting dissidents. More than 5,000 have died so far in the fighting. It will take another six months before the UN acknowledges that a war is taking place on Syrian soil.
Image: Reuters/Goran Tomasevic
Outside intervention
In September 2012, Iran confirms that it has fighters on the ground in Syria - a fact long denied by Damascus. The presence of allied troops underscores the hesitance of the US and other Western powers to intervene in the conflict. The US, stung by failed interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq, sees dialogue as the only reasonable solution.
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Fleeing the conflict
As the death toll nears 100,000, the number of refugees in neighboring countries - such as Turkey and Jordan - hits one million. That number will double by September 2013. The West and the Arab League have seen all attempts at a transitional government fail in the two years of war, watching as fighting spills over into Turkey and Lebanon. They fear Assad will stay in power by any means possible.
Image: Reuters/B. Khabieh
No united front against Assad
Assad has long claimed he's combatting terrorists. But it's not until the second year of war that the fragmented Free Syrian Army is definitely known to include radical extremists. The group Al-Nusra Front pledges allegiance to al Qaeda, further splintering the opposition.
Image: Reuters/A. Abdullah
From brute force to chemical warfare
In June 2013, the White House says it has evidence that Assad has been using sarin nerve gas on civilians - a report later backed by the UN. The discovery pushes US President Barack Obama and other Western leaders toward considering the use of military force. However, Russia's proposal to remove the chemical weapons ultimately wins out.
Image: Reuters
Islamic State emerges
Reports of a new jihadist group calling itself the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) emerge in the final weeks of 2013. Taking land in northern Syria and Iraq, the group sparks infighting among the opposition, with some 500 dead by early 2014. The unexpected emergence of IS ultimately draws the US, France, Saudi Arabia and other nations into the war.
