Donald Trump dumps on key US ally, saying Kurds ‘didn’t help’ America with World War II

They’ve been instrumental in the fight against Islamic State, but Donald Trump has criticised an ally that the US has abandoned.

President Donald Trump has launched an extraordinary attack on a key US ally while defending his withdrawal of US troops from Syria, allowing Turkey to invade.

Kurdish militia in the war-torn country have come under immediate attack, with Turkish tanks and troops crossing the border overnight as part of a ground offensive in the northeast.

That came on the back of aerial assaults in the Kurdish-held region, just four days after Mr Trump ordered the exit of a contingent of US troops.

In a press conference today explaining his decision, Mr Trump seemed to justify it by declaring that Kurds hadn’t helped America in World War II.

“They didn’t help us in the Second World War, they didn’t help us with Normandy, for example.”

He then added: “With all of that being said, we like the Kurds.”

A Turkish armoured vehicles prepare to cross the border into Syria. Picture: Getty Images

Smoke billows following a Turkish bombardment on Syria's northeast. Picture: AFP

Kurdish forces have played a major role in the fight against Islamic State in Syria for the past five years and now hold an estimated 12,000 terrorist fights in prisons across the country.

They have announced an abrupt suspension of IS-related missions in the wake of Turkish military action.

What happens to those Islamic State fighters now remains uncertain, and Mr Trump brushed off the question when asked if he was concerned.

“Well, they’re going to be escaping to Europe — that’s where they want to go,” he said.

Although, he appeared to indicate that some high-profile figures were being removed from the country.

“We are taking some of the most dangerous ISIS fighters out … and we’re putting them in different locations where it’s secure,” he said.

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President Donald Trump has defended the withdrawal of US troops from Syria. Picture: AFP

Turkish officials have claimed that the president privately gave the go-ahead for its missions, although the White House hasn’t commented.

Mr Trump issued a brief statement overnight saying that America “does not endorse this attack”.

Today however, Mr Trump said he was confident Turkey’s actions would be “humane” and vowed to impose sanctions if they were found not to be.

He couldn’t detail what he considered to be humane military action, saying: “We’re going to have to define that as we go along.”

Civilians flee with their belongings amid a Turkish bombardment on Syria's northeastern town of Ras al-Ain in the Hasakeh province along the Turkish border. Picture: AFP

“We’ve been talking to Turkey for three years, they’ve been wanting to do this for many years, as you know,” Mr Trump said.

“They’ve been fighting each other for centuries … for hundreds of years, this has been going on.”

In defending the apparent abandonment of Kurds, Mr Trump said the US had spent “massive” amounts of money assisting them in recent years.