US says it will continue consultations with Turkey on Syria

WASHINGTON

The US said Thursday it will continue to consult with its NATO ally, Turkey, concerning Syria because it shares "an interest" with Ankara in the war-torn country.

State Department spokesman Ned Price said the US and Turkey \ want to see an end to the country's 10-year conflict, and Washington will work with Ankara and other regional nations "as we seek to bring about an end, and a diminution to that violence."

The US on Tuesday condemned a cross-border attack on Turkish soil and offered condolences for the killings of two Turkish police offers in northern Syria.

Three mortar shells were fired Monday from an area occupied by the YPG/PKK terror group into different locations in the Karkamis district of southeastern Gaziantep province. No casualties took place in the attack, according to the Gaziantep governor's office.

Separately, two Turkish special operations police officers were killed, and two others wounded, when the PKK’s Syrian offshoot carried out a terror attack Sunday in Azaz, in northern Syria, using a guided missile that struck an armored vehicle.

In response to the attacks, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey has run out of patience due to repeated attacks on Turkish forces and territories in the region, adding Ankara is determined to eliminate threats emanating from northern Syria, either itself or with the support of local forces.

Asked about those comments, Price said the US has "emphasized the importance of all sides respecting and maintaining cease-fire zones in order to enhance stability in Syria."