On board his flight back from Jordan, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke with the journalists accompanying him.

Hürriyet (Liberty) daily of Turkey reported that reflecting on the problem regarding Syrian Kurds, the Turkish president said: “There are Kurds in harmony with Turkey in Afrin, Syria. Of course there also are followers of the Kurdish PYD [(Democratic Union Party)].

“I’m saddened when using the word ‘Kurd.’ Why? Because we [Turks] have no problems with our Kurdish brothers. For example, there are Kurdish brothers living with us in my country. Not all Kurds should be considered as PKK [(Kurdistan Workers’ Party)] supporters. The situation is the same also in Afrin, Syria. There are Kurdish tribes moving with Turkey there.”