ISTANBUL/ANKARA (Reuters) - Talks aimed at ending a 40-year-old militant conflict have fostered peace hopes in Turkey but the precarious situation of Kurdish forces in Syria and uncertainty about Ankara's intentions have left many Kurds anxious about the path ahead.

The Turkish armed forces have been placed on full combat readiness due to the potential for operations against Kurdish armed groups in Syria. This information was provided to the pro-government newspaper "Türkiye" by sources within the Turkish Ministry of Defense.

Turkey's top diplomat on Friday ruled out a role for French troops in Syria, saying it was only negotiating with the United States which has sought to head off Turkish military action against Kurdish fighters there.

Turkey threatened Tuesday to launch a military operation against Kurdish forces in Syria unless they accepted Ankara's conditions for a "bloodless" transition after the fall of strongman president Bashar al-Assad.

A key dam in northern Syria has become a flash point in the conflict between Kurdish forces and Turkish-backed armed groups

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Friday that the new Syrian administration should be given an opportunity to address the presence of Kurdish militants in the country, and reiterated that the Turkish military would act if it did not.

The Turkish Armed Forces have been put on high combat readiness due to the possibility of conducting an operation against Kurdish armed groups in Syria. This information was relayed to the pro-government newspaper "Türkiye" by sources from the Turkish Ministry of Defense.