Turkey's Erdogan: No intent to stop retaliatory shelling against Syrian Kurdish YPG

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan talks at a business forum during a visit in Lima, Peru, February 3, 2016. REUTERS/Janine Costa

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey does not intend to stop shelling Syrian Kurdish YPG militia in response to cross-border fire, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, adding the United State should decide whether it wants to back Turkey or the Kurdish insurgents. The rapid of advance of U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish fighters, who are taking advantage of Russian air strikes in the region to seize territory near the Turkish border, has infuriated Ankara, which sees the insurgents as a terrorist organisation. Turkey has been shelling YPG positions for days. Erdogan also said that ignoring the link between Syrian Kurds and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) was a "hostile act". (Reporting by Asli Kandemir and Nick Tattersall; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Toby Chopra)