WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States is not working Turkey to create a "safe zone;’ for refugees along the Turkish-Syrian border for refugees fleeing the Syrian civil war, the Department of Defense spokesperson Adrian J.T. Rankine-Galloway told Sputnik.
"At this time, we are not working with Turkey at this time to create a ‘safe zone’ along the border," Rankine-Galloway said on Wednesday. "We do not think a safe zone would resolve the fundamental issues on the ground because there continues to be fighting on the ground."
Earlier reports have stated that Turkey allegedly started creating a safe zone along its common border with Syria.
Rankine-Galloway said the United States welcomed the progress that had been made in cutting Islamic state forces off from the Turkish border.
"Our own operations in support of SDF [Syrian Democratic Forces] opposition forces on the ground helped to clear Manbij, which was a key transit point for ISIL [Islamic State] fighters into Turkey," Rankine-Galloway added.
If US forces can preserve the space along that Turkish border, they will be able to promote greater security and prevent the flow of foreign fighters into and out of Syria, Rankine-Galloway concluded.
