U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Turkey with economic devastation if it attacks a U.S.-allied Kurdish militia in Syria, weakening the Turkish lira and prompting sharp criticism from Ankara on Monday.
Relations between the two NATO allies have been strained over U.S. backing for the Kurdish YPG, which Turkey views as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that is waging a decades-long insurgency on Turkish soil.
A diplomatic crisis last year, when Trump imposed sanctions on two of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ministers and raised tariffs on Turkish metal exports, helped push the Turkish lira to a record low in August.