US appears to root for Kurdish support in Raqqa push: Turkey

The United States appears to have decided to enlist the help of Kurdish YPG militia in a campaign to push Islamic State out of its stronghold in Raqqa, Syria, thwarting Turkey's ambitions, a senior Turkish official said on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Turkey, the United States and Russia must coordinate to clear Syria of terrorist groups. The three countries' chiefs of staff were working to prevent clashes between the different parties.

Yildirim spoke as Turkey's military chief of staff met his U.S. and Russian counterparts in the southern Turkish province of Antalya to discuss coordination in Syria. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the results of the meeting "could change the whole picture".

"... It appears that the U.S. may carry out this operation with the YPG, not with Turkey. And at the same time the U.S. is giving weapons to the YPG," the official said.

"If this operation is carried out in this manner there will be a cost for Turkey-U.S. relations, because the YPG is a terrorist organization ..."