Erdogan Vows No Let-up in Strikes on Syrian Kurdish Fighters

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said there was no question of Turkish forces stopping their bombardment of Syrian Kurdish fighters, vowing not allow the creation of a Kurdish stronghold in northern Syria.

Turkish Firtina howitzers stationed in Turkey's southern region of Kilis shelled positions of Kurdish fighters in Syria for the fifth day in the row, in response to incoming fire, reports said.

"They (the West) tell us to stop shelling" the Kurdish fighters in Syria, Erdogan said in a televised speech.

"Forgive me, but there is no question of us doing such a thing. Whoever fires shells on Turkey will get not just a tit-for-tat response but an even greater one," he added.

"We will not allow a new Qandil on our southern border" with Syria, Erdogan added, referring to the mountain in northern Iraq which for years has been stronghold of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants.

Western countries including the United States and France have urged Turkey to stop the firing, fearing it will endanger an already beleaguered deal, agreed in Munich last week, for a cessation of hostilities.

After calm in the morning, the Turkish howitzers renewed firing on positions of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its People's Protection Units (YPG) militia from 1445 GMT, the Dogan news agency reported.

Erdogan meanwhile stepped up a war of words with the United States, which supports the PYD and YPG as the best fighting force on the ground against Islamic State (IS) jihadists.

"The fact that the United States is continuing to support the YPG is something I find hard to understand," said Erdogan.

"Aren't we NATO allies?" he said, addressing Washington. "Are you our friend or the friend of the PYD?"

"We know that we need friends. But if you don't see us as friends then please say it loud and clear."

Washington recognizes the PKK as a terror group but not the PYD and YPG.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the United States urged Turkey to cease artillery fire across the border. "We just think it escalates tensions in the region."

Turkey fears the Syrian Kurds want to carve out a continuous autonomous region in northern Syria stretching from the Iraqi border almost to the Mediterranean.

Ankara is concerned the Kurds will now take a so-called "corridor" east of the town of Azaz on the Turkish border still in control of rebels to link up two Kurdish-held areas.

"We will not hesitate to take the necessary steps against all terror organizations in Syria," said Erdogan.

"If someone is trying to test the limits of Turkey's patience then they should know this limit has been reached."

Turkey has long pressed for a safe area backed by a no fly zone in this region extending several kilometers into the border to ensure its security and house Syrian refugees.

"We want to form a 10-kilometer (six-mile) safe line inside Syria, including Azaz," Deputy Prime Minister Yalcin Akdogan told A Haber television in an interview.

But the idea has never found much enthusiasm from the United States, a failure which Erdogan said had allowed Russia to seize the military initiative.

"Hey America! You did not want the no-fly zone and now the Russian planes are bombing the area and thousands of people are dying," he added.

A senior Turkish official said Tuesday that Turkey was in favor of a ground operation in Syria to end the fighting, but only in cooperation with its Western and Gulf allies.

But Erdogan said: "We are not in search of an adventure and we are not seeking to throw someone else into an adventure."