Turkey and the United States will form a "safe zone" around the northern Syrian town of Manbij if Washington keeps its promises, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's spokesman said on Thursday.
İbrahim Kalın told state broadcaster TRT Haber that the agreement between Ankara and Washington on Manbij was binding, and that a change in the U.S. Secretary of State would not change the deal even if it leads to a 1-2 week delay.
Kalın also said Turkey expected Turkish forces and its rebel allies to clear Syria's Afrin town of militants "very soon" and added that Ankara had no intention of handing over the town to the Syrian government following the completion of its military offensive in the region.
TURKEY SECURES 'OVER 70 PERCENT' OF SYRIA'S AFRIN
Over 70 percent of Syria's Afrin region has been secured during ongoing Operation Olive Branch, Kalın said in statement.
"The circle has been completely tightened around the terrorists. We predict that the center of Afrin will be completely cleared of terrorists within short period of time.
"They wanted to make Afrin a new Qandil. This [desire] has been eliminated through Operation Olive Branch."
Qandil Mountain has served as a headquarters for the PKK terror group in northern Iraq.
More than 3,500 terrorists have been "neutralized" since the start of Operation Olive Branch in Syria's northwestern Afrin region, the Turkish General Staff said in a statement on Thursday morning.
Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply the terrorists in question either surrendered or were killed or captured.
On Jan. 20, Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch to clear YPG/PKK-Daesh terrorists from Afrin, northwestern Syria.
According to the Turkish General Staff, the operation aims to establish security and stability along Turkey's borders and the region as well as to protect Syrians from the oppression and cruelty of terrorists.
The operation is being carried out under the framework of Turkey's rights based on international law, UN Security Council resolutions, its self-defense rights under the UN charter, and respect for Syria's territorial integrity, it said.
The military also said only terror targets are being destroyed and that "utmost care" is being taken to avoid harming civilians.
