Call with Erdogan: Merkel calls for "immediate cessation" of the Turkish Syria offensive

Chancellor Angela Merkel has called on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to stop the military offensive in northeastern Syria. The Chancellor said on Sunday in a telephone conversation with Erdogan for an "immediate end to the military operation," a government spokeswoman said.

Notwithstanding legitimate Turkish security interests, this threatens to displace large sections of the local population, destabilize the region, and resurrect the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organization.

The aim of the Turkish offensive, which started on Wednesday, is the Kurdish militia YPG, which controls a large area on the Syrian side of the border. The government in Ankara sees it as an offshoot of the banned Kurdish Workers' Party PKK in Turkey and thus a terrorist organization. For the US, however, the "Syrian Democratic Forces" (SDF) led by the Kurdish YPG in the fight against the terrorist militia "Islamic State" (IS) were a reliable ally. Trump is therefore now accused of betraying the Kurds.

Turkey is internationally criticized for its actions in Syria. The US Treasury Department said on Saturday that sanctions were being prepared. Subsequently, several countries - including Germany - restricted their arms exports to Ankara. On Saturday, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas had already announced that the Federal Government has partially stopped the arms exports to the NATO partner in response to the Turkish invasion of northern Syria. Nevertheless, Ankara is pushing ahead with its offensive.

Other topics of conversation in the phone call Merkel with Erdogan were the situation in the Syrian province of Idlib and the Turkish gas exploration holes in the eastern Mediterranean had been reported by the government spokeswoman.

Read here, an analysis of Erdogan's plans in Syria

Erdogan's plans for SyriaThe occupying power