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Article snippet: The White House on Sunday night said Turkey will soon be launching a military operation in northeastern Syria and that U.S. troops will no longer be "in the immediate area" when it happens. "Turkey will soon be moving forward with its long-planned operation into Northern Syria. The United States Armed Forces will not support or be involved in the operation, and United States forces, having defeated the ISIS territorial 'Caliphate,' will no longer be in the immediate area," White House press secretary MORE said in a statement. The announcement comes hours after MORE held a phone call with Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in which the two reportedly discussed the conflict and agreed to a meeting in Washington in November. More than 1,000 U.S. troops are currently deployed in northeastern Syria, where they work closely with the Kurdish YPG, which leads the Syrian Democratic Forces in the region. The Kurds have proven to be among Washington's most effective allies in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Erdogan has repeatedly expressed frustration with Washington's close alliance with the Kurds along his country's border with Syria, linking them to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is designated a terrorist organization in Turkey. Washington also labels the PKK a terrorist group, but not the YPG. The U.S., in an effort to reduce tensions in the region, has been working on establishing a safe zone along the border. But the pla... Link to the full article to read more