Turkey's CHP suggests cancelling Erdogan-Trump meeting

ANKARA

As it expects "no good result" out of next week’s meeting of the Turkish and U.S. presidents in Washington, Turkey's main opposition party Thursday suggested the government should cancel it.

"Sometimes cancelling a planned meeting may bring better results than attending” it, said Ozturk Yilmaz, deputy chair of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), speaking in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump authorizing the Defense Department to arm the PKK/PYD terrorist group in Syria.

Trump is to welcome President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on an official visit to the U.S. on May 16.

"The U.S. has found a partner east of the Euphrates and wants to strengthen that entity [the PKK/PYD]. Although the U.S. speaks in favor of Syria’s territorial integrity, such steps show it does not really agree," Yilmaz told reporters in parliament.

The opposition deputy said Turkey "should be cautious."

‘US arms will never be returned’

Stressing that weapons the U.S. brought to Iraq in years past stayed there and fell into the wrong hands, Yilmaz said:

"Nobody should ever believe that those arms [sent to Syria] will be returned. No way. Let's be realistic. The arms will stay there and be used [by terrorist groups]."

Also on Wednesday, CHP spokesperson Bulent Tezcan said: "We believe the president should review his U.S. visit in a serious manner and reconsider it."

Turkey considers the PYD and its armed wing, the YPG, to be the Syrian offshoots of the PKK, a banned terrorist organization in the U.S., Turkey, and the EU.

But Washington has resisted similarly designating the YPG, instead seeing it as a principal partner in the fight against Daesh in northern Syria.

Erdogan's visit will include high-level meetings of his delegation with U.S. officials to discuss the issue of the PKK/PYD in northern Syria and Iraq.

Reporting by Ismail Cimen; Writing by Ayse Humeyra Atilgan