It would not be correct to discuss establishing a “security zone” in coordination with the United States before trust between Ankara and Washington is re-establ

“Trust with the U.S. has been damaged,” Çavuşoğlu said, three days after his conversation with U.S. counterpart Rex Tillerson, Hurriyet Daily reports.

“Until trust between the two countries has been re-established, it would not be appropriate to discuss such issues,” he told daily Hürriyet, referring to Tillerson’s suggestion to build a 30-kilometer deep security zone into Syria, starting from the Turkish border.

“We are not certain what exactly the [U.S.] objective is. First of all we need to fix this skeptical environment,” Çavuşoğlu added.

While on an official trip to Europe on Jan. 22, Tillerson said the U.S. recognizes Ankara’s “legitimate right” to defend itself from terrorists, suggesting that a security zone could help stabilize the situation and meet Turkey’s security concerns.

Turkey launched “Operation Olive Branch” on Jan. 20 to remove Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) militants from the Syrian district of Afrin.

News.Az