Lindsey Graham says Congress will call for Turkey to be suspended from NATO and hit it with sanctions if it attacks Kurds

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Lindsey Graham says Congress will call for Turkey to be suspended from NATO and hit it with sanctions if it attacks Kurds

Lindsey Graham

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  • Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham on Monday said he expects bipartisan, veto-proof sanctions against Turkey if it attacks the Kurds in Syria.
  • Graham also said Congress would call for Turkey's suspension from NATO if they attack Kurdish forces.
  • This came after the Trump administration announced it's withdrawing US troops from northeastern Syria, a move that's led to widespread backlash as it offers a greenlight to Turkey to invade.
  • Turkey views the Kurdish forces as a threat.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina on Monday warned Turkey a bipartisan group of lawmakers would introduce sanctions against it and "call for their suspension from NATO" if it attacks the Kurds in Syria.

Graham, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said, "We will introduce bipartisan sanctions against Turkey if they invade Syria and will call for their suspension from NATO if they attack Kurdish forces who assisted the U.S. in the destruction of the ISIS Caliphate."

"Hope and expect sanctions against Turkey - if necessary - would be veto-proof," Graham added. He said he'd just spoken with Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen, who was on board.

Graham has excoriated Trump's abrupt decision to withdraw US troops from northeastern Syria, abandoning Kurdish forces and opening the door for a Turkish military invasion.

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