Turkish Defense Minister said on Friday that a planned military incursion in the northwestern Syrian region of Afrin should be carried out with no delay, noting that the operation in the area had in fact “de facto” started with cross-border shelling.
Nurettin Canikli said Turkey will launch a military operation in Afrin, Syria, to remove all “terrorist presence” from northern Syria, referring to US-backed Kurdish militants.
The defense chief said the Afrin operation had in fact “de facto” started with cross-border shelling, but that no troops had been deployed.
Earlier on Thursday, Turkey said it would seek Russia’s approval for the operation, amid rising tensions with the US.
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Turkey’s military chief had been dispatched to Moscow to hold talks with his Russian counterpart over the imminent air campaign in Afrin.
Cavusoglu said Chief of Staff Hulusi Akar’s trip was part of boarder efforts by Ankara to coordinate the campaign with Russia and Iran.
Washington angered Ankara earlier this week when it announced a plan to work with US-backed militants of the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to set up a new 30,000-strong “border security” force near the Turkish border.
For its part, Syria has censured both the American and Turkish plans for a fresh wave of unilateral military operations on its soil. Damascus views such measures as an assault on the country’s sovereignty.
The Syrian government has also indicated that it would shoot down any Turkish planes entering its skies.
Source: Agencies
