Turkey: No new deal with US on using air base to fight ISIL

A Turkish official says there is no new agreement with the United States on using an air base in southern Turkey for operations against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). 

Turkey and the United States are still talking about the Incirlik air base as well as Turkish demands for the creation of a no-fly zone and a safe haven for refugees, the government official told The Associated Press on Monday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the issue publicly.

On Sunday, U.S. defense officials said Turkey would let U.S. and coalition forces use its bases for operations against ISIL fighters in Syria and Iraq. But even if progress is made in negotiations with Turkey, including Ankara's agreement to train several thousand Syrian moderate rebels, it may not be enough to turn the tide in Syria's border town of Kobane, where intense fighting continues.

The Obama administration had been pressing Ankara to play a larger role against ISIL, which has taken control of large swaths of Syria and Iraq, including territory on Turkey's border, and sent refugees fleeing into Turkey.

U.S. officials confirmed Saturday that Ankara had agreed to train Syrian moderate forces on Turkish soil. A Turkish government official said Sunday that Turkey put the number at 4,000 opposition fighters and said they would be screened by Turkish intelligence.

On Sunday, President Barack Obama's national security adviser, Susan Rice, made clear the U.S. has not asked "the Turks to send ground forces of their own into Syria."

American officials are "continuing to talk to the Turks about other ways that they can play an important role. They are already essential to trying to prevent the flow of foreign fighters" and prevent extremists from exporting oil through Turkey. "So Turkey has many ways it can contribute," Rice told NBC's "Meet the Press."

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel spoke by telephone Sunday with Turkey's defense minister, Ismet Yilmaz, and thanked him for his country's willingness to assist in the fight.

Turkey and other American allies are pressing the U.S. to create a no-fly zone inside Syrian territory, and seeking creation of a secure buffer on the Syrian side of the border with Turkey. A "safe zone" would require Americans and their partners to protect ground territory and patrol the sky.

Hagel has said American leaders are open to discussing a safe zone, but creating one isn't "actively being considered."

The Associated Press