America should not appease our fickle ally, Turkey

Weeks after the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Force liberated the town of Manbij from the clutches of ISIS, the U.S. is now coercing the Kurdish-led SDF to abandon its hard-fought position to appease its all too fickle ally Turkey.

The Syrian Civil War has, of course, been a nightmare for the Obama administration, and its attempt to “train and equip” supposedly moderate groups opposed to Syrian President Bashir Assad became a total embarrassment when U.S. arms fell into the hands of the al-Qaeda affiliated al-Nustra Front.

For its part, Turkey’s government has knowingly allowed assistance to filter to ISIS across its southern border. Kurdish coalition forces have not only been the U.S.’ most reliable allies but best fighters, making tremendous military gains and freeing thousands of captives from the horrors of ISIS.

Unfortunately, Turkey and its president Recep Tayyip Erdogan are apparently more concerned with eliminating the Kurds than the Islamic State. When the Turkish military recently took the town of Jarablus, ISIS forces withdrew without resistance, clearing the way for a clash between Turkish and Kurdish forces. ISIS well understands Turkey’s agenda and is using it to its advantage to recover from its recent losses.

This story was originally published September 7, 2016 at 2:42 PM with the headline "America should not appease our fickle ally, Turkey."