Turkey ‘uncomfortable’ with US-Russia tensions in Syria

Turkey is "very uncomfortable" with some countries that have turned Syria into an "arm wrestling" arena, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday.

"We are very uncomfortable that some countries, which rely on their military power, are turning Syria into an arm wrestling arena," Erdogan said at opening ceremony of 36-kilometer (22 miles) long Baskentray rail in the capital Ankara.

Erdogan's remarks came a day after U.S. President Donald Trump warned Russia on Twitter to brace for U.S. military engagement in Syria following a suspected chemical attack in Douma, Eastern Ghouta on April 8 that killed dozens of people.

Trump also blamed Moscow for being partners with “a gas killing animal”, referring to Syria’s Bashar al-Assad.

Trump’s posts on Twitter followed a warning from Moscow that the risk of a direct military clash between Russia and the U.S. in Syria “is higher than before”, with a Russian envoy saying that U.S. missiles flying over the war-ravaged country would be shot down.

Erdogan recalled that he had a phone talk with the U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday to discuss the latest developments in Syria.

"Today, I will talk to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin. How we can stop this chemical massacre [in Syria], I will again talk to him about this," he added.

Fight against terrorism

Erdogan said at least 4,123 terrorists had been neutralized since the launch of Operation Olive Branch in northwestern Syria's Afrin.

Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply that 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.

On March 18, Turkish-backed troops liberated Afrintown center, which had been a major hideout for the YPG/PKK since 2012.

Erdogan said YPG/PKK terrorists will be eliminated "one by one", adding: "We will continue our presence and activities in Syrian territories until they become safe for everyone."

He also slammed those who support "bloody Assad regime" and YPG/PKK terrorist organizations. 

Erdogan said that the number of "neutralized" PKK terrorists in northern Iraq reached 337.

Airstrikes on PKK targets in northern Iraq, where the terror group has its main base in the Mt. Qandil region, near the Iranian border, have been carried out regularly since July 2015, when the PKK resumed its armed terror campaign.