Hammond: ‘Disturbing evidence’ of Kurdish cooperation with Syrian regime and Russia

British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said on Tuesday that his country has seen “disturbing evidence” that Kurdish forces are coordinating with the Syrian regime and the Russian air force, referring to the Kurdish YPG group.

“What we have seen over the last weeks is very disturbing evidence of coordination between Syrian Kurdish forces, the Syrian regime and the Russian air force which are making us distinctly uneasy about the Kurds’ role in all of this,” Hammond told the British Parliament.

Asked about the sanctions imposed on Russia, Hammond said the time is not right to send signals of retreat or concession to Russia because “Mr. Putin has only adopted the language of force”.

Hammond said that he believed the success of the Russian-US truce in Syria, which is scheduled to begin on 27 February, “depends on Moscow’s good intentions”.