Turkey has rejected Washington's denials that it has provided weapons to a Syrian Kurdish militia force which Ankara considers to be a terrorist group.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Thursday: "The United States has provided arms to the YPG — period."

He was responding to a U.S. Embassy statement a day earlier which said the U.S. had not "provided weapons or explosives to the YPG or the PKK — period."

Turkey views the U.S.-backed People's Protection Units, or YPG, as a terrorist organization because of its links to Turkey's outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also rebuffed the U.S. denials and called on Washington to side with its ally.

Erdogan said: "Aren't we partners in NATO? Why are you supporting a terror organization and not us?"