Turkey determined to destroy 'terror corridor' in Syria

 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Turkey is determined to destroy what he called a "terror corridor" in northern Syrian regardless of whether or not Turkey and the United States agree on the establishment of a safe zone.

Turkish and U.S. officials have been holding talks for a safe zone east of the river Euphrates to address Turkey's security concerns stemming from the presence of Kurdish fighters in the region, which Turkey considers as terrorists. Turkey has warned of a possible new offensive into Syria if no agreement is reached.

Erdogan said Friday such an incursion would cut contact between Kurdish militants in Syria and Iraq.

He also said Turkey had caught or killed all suspects behind the killing of a Turkish diplomat last week in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region.

Damascus said Friday it would reject any agreement between Turkey and the U.S. to establish a "security zone" in northern Syria as tantamount to a violation of the country's sovereignty.

"Syria reiterates its categorical rejection of any American-Turkish agreement," a foreign ministry source told state news agency SANA.

Such a deal would "constitute a blatant attack on the sovereignty and unity of the country", the source added.

Turkey and the U.S. began talks Tuesday to establish a "security zone" in northern Syria aimed at creating a buffer between Kurdish fighters and the Turkish border.

The idea was first mooted by U.S. President Donald Trump in January, in a call with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, at a moment when Turkey was threatening to launch an offensive against Kurdish forces in Syria.

But Turkey said Wednesday it was not satisfied with the buffer zone solutions offered by the U.S.

"The latest U.S. proposals are not satisfactory," said Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.

"We should say things clearly: we have the impression that [the United States] is trying to buy time," he added.

The U.S. has provided extensive support to the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia in Syria.

The YPG has led the fight against Daesh in Syria, but Ankara sees it as a terrorist offshoot of Kurdish militants inside Turkey.

Turkey has launched two previous offensives into Syria against Daesh and the YPG, in 2016 and 2018.