TURKISH President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has mocked Donald Trump’s tweets about Syria saying he “can no longer follow them.”
US President Trump controversially withdrew American forces from the war zone after a phone call with the Turkish leader.
And following criticism from all sides over the move, which prompted Turkey to invade northern Syria, the Republican’s barrage of tweets have often appeared contradictory.
Poking fun at Trump’s love of social media, Erdogan told reporters: “When we take a look at Mr Trump’s Twitter posts, we can no longer follow them.”
The Turkish strongman also insisted his offensive against the Kurdish-led forces in Syria – who have since joined dictator Bashar al-Assad – will continue.
He said his forces would continue their assault despite the threat of US sanctions and demands for a ceasefire.
On his personal Twitter account, Trump has praised his own decision to withdraw the remaining 1,000 US troops from the region while also later blasting Turkey for filling the void.
He has also welcomed the intervention of Assad and his ally Russia despite also describing them as “our enemy.”
In tweet, he wrote: “Big sanctions on Turkey coming! Do people really think we should go to war with NATO member Turkey? Never ending wars will end!”
Erdogan also said he told the US leader during their phone call to stop lashing out at the media which the New Yorker often refers to as the “fake news.”
He said: “I told Trump ‘You get very angry with the media from time to time. You are now under their influence. Don’t listen to them, you are a strong leader. This does not befit a strong leader’.”
The former mayor of Istanbul told Sky News today that he would not meet with Vice President Mike Pence – who has flown to Turkey to discuss a ceasefire along with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
However, Erdogan’s director of communication has since walked back those remarks insisting he will meet with Pence tomorrow.
In the first week of the Turkish assault, at least 154 fighters from the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces have been killed.
There were another 128 fighters from Turkish-backed Syrian factions killed, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
It added at least 69 civilians have been killed in Syria.
Turkey claims six of its soldiers have died so far, as well as at least 20 Turkish civilians killed by Kurdish mortar fire across the border.
US TROOPS ‘REPOSITIONED’
A US official said the approximately 1,000 US troops being withdrawn from northern Syria will re-position in Iraq, Kuwait and possibly Jordan.
The source added that US forces in Iraq could conduct cross-border operations against the Islamic State group in Syria as they did before.
That could help reaffirm the now-abandoned partnership with Syrian Kurdish-led forces, the anonymous US official said.
After opening the way for the Turkish assault with its pullout, Washington is now trying to restrain its fellow NATO member.
It comes after President Trump on Monday announced sanctions aimed at Turkey’s economy.
The US called on Erdogan to stop the offensive and declare a cease-fire.
The UK and EU countries also moved to broaden an arms sale embargo against their easternmost ally.
Mike Pence said Trump spoke directly to Erdogan, who promised not to attack the border town of Kobani.
In 2015, that town saw the Islamic State group’s first defeat in a battle by the US-backed Kurdish fighters.
But defiant Erdogan made clear that he had no intention of halting the Turkish offensive.
He told reporters: “They say ‘declare a ceasefire.’ We could never declare a ceasefire.”
And in a column in the Wall Street Journal, Erdogan defended Turkey’s offensive.
He urged the international community to support Ankara’s effort to create what it calls a resettlement “safe zone” for refugees.
And Erdogan said Turkey’s warnings it would be unable to stop refugee floods into the West without international support “fell on deaf ears.”
Turkey said it invaded northern Syria to create a zone of control the entire length of the border and drive out the Kurdish fighters.
It regards the Kurdish forces as terrorists because of their links to Kurdish insurgents in Turkey.
The UN humanitarian aid coordinator said at least 160,000 civilians in northeastern Syria have been displaced amid the Turkish operations.