ANKARA: US President Donald Trump’s national security adviser flew to Turkey on Wednesday as part of an emergency delegation to try to persuade Ankara to halt an assault on northern Syria that has forced Washington into an abrupt retreat. Robert O’Brien, who has been national security adviser for a month, was due to meet Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, ahead of talks the following day between Vice President Mike Pence and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. The Turkish assault, launched after a phone call between Erdogan and Trump, forced Washington to abandon a strategy in place for five years and pull its entire force out of northern Syria. Washington announced a package of sanctions to punish Turkey on Monday, although Trump’s critics said the measures were too feeble to have an impact. Halkbank called it part of the sanctions against Turkey.

Source: Pakistan Today October 16, 2019 10:41 UTC