Turkey Unable to Prove That Syrian Kurds Behind Ankara Attack - Former FM

© REUTERS / StringerCars of emergency services arrive after an explosion in Ankara, Turkey.
Cars of emergency services arrive after an explosion in Ankara, Turkey. - Sputnik International
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Turkey is unable to prove that Syria's Kurdish Democratic Union (PYD) was behind the attack in Ankara and thus persuade the United States that it is a terrorist group, Yasar Yakis, former Turkish foreign minister, said Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — According to Yakis, more evidence is needed to prove that the PYD was behind the recent terrorist attack in Ankara.

"So far the PYD did not take Turkey as a target, and Turkey cannot persuade the United States that it is a terrorist organization. Yes, it is linked to the PKK, because their basis and their electorate are the same, but so far the PYD and its military branch do not carry out any attack directed at Turkey," Yakis told a conference of the Valdai International Discussion Club in Moscow.

In this Monday, Sept. 28, 2015, photo, provided by the United Nations, US President Barack Obama, left, and Russia's President Vladimir Putin toast during a luncheon hosted during the 70th annual United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters - Sputnik International
Unexpected: Turkey's Attacks on Syrian Kurds 'Bring Russia and US Closer'
On February 17, a car bomb exploded outside a military housing complex near the parliament building in central Ankara, killing 28 and injuring 61. The Turkish authorities have blamed the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) for the attack, which is believed to be the armed wing of the PYD.

The Kurdish issue is putting strain on US-Turkey relations as Washington does not consider the PYD to be a terrorist organization but an ally in the fight against Daesh terrorists.

Ankara claims that Syrian Kurds have links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is fighting for Kurdish independence from Turkey and is considered a terrorist organization by Ankara. At the same time, the PKK denies having any ties to the PYD.

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