ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - United States Senators Chris Van Hollen of the Democratic Party and Lindsey Graham of the Republican Party released a joint statement announcing their intent to introduce a sanctions legislation against Turkey if Ankara does not cease its operations against Kurdish-led forces in Syria.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), considered the Kurdish de facto army in Syria and the US’ primary ally in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS) in the country, controls the bulk of northeastern and eastern regions of Syria, amounting to a quarter of the country's territory.

Clashes have erupted between the Kurdish forces and Turkish-backed rebel groups in SDF-controlled areas since the start of the anti-government group’s campaign in late November, reportedly leading to the displacement of thousands of civilians.

The US has been working to mediate a ceasefire between the two sides. US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on Tuesday told reporters that they were able to negotiate a ceasefire for Manbij, one of the main areas where the SDF and the Turkish-backed groups have been clashing, which extends through the end of the week.

Despite the US announcement, the SDF has said that the groups have mobilized and are currently preparing to launch an attack on the Kurdish city of Kobani.

Van Hollen and Graham described the SDF as "the tip of the spear" in the fight against ISIS, adding that through increasing their attacks against the SDF, the Turkish-backed groups are "once again" threatening the mission to prevent a resurgence of the jihadist group.

“While Turkey has some legitimate security concerns that can be addressed, these developments are undermining regional security, and the United States cannot sit idly by,” read the statement from the senators on Tuesday, stressing that Washington must use all the tools at its disposal to “press for a sustained ceasefire and a demilitarized zone.”

SDF chief Mazloum Abdi on Tuesday said they are ready to propose the establishment of a “demilitarized zone” in Kobani, with the redeployment of security forces under US supervision, to address Turkey’s security concerns and “ensure permanent stability in the region.”

The semi-autonomous Kurdish enclave in Syria, known as Rojava, is protected by local police, the People’s Protection Units (YPG), and the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ), which later became part of the multi-ethnic and multi-religious SDF.

Turkey considers the YPG, which is the backbone of the SDF, as inextricably linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), however, the YPG insists that they merely subscribe to similar ideology.

“If Turkey doesn’t immediately accept these terms, we intend to introduce bipartisan sanctions legislation this week, similar to the bill we jointly introduced in 2019,” the senators added.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, US President-elect Donald Trump claimed that Turkey was behind the rebel groups' "unfriendly takeover" of Syria "without a lot of lives being lost," calling Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan "a very smart man."

"Nobody knows what the final outcome is gonna be in the region," he added.