Deputy Prime Minister Yalcin Akdogan made the comments on February 17 as Syrian government forces, backed by Russian air strikes, have advanced toward the Turkish border.
Kurdish militia fighters have taken advantage of the offensive to seize territory from other Syrian rebel groups.
Turkey has long pressed for a safe zone on Syrian territory, backed up by a no-fly zone, to protect its borders and provide protection for refugees.
Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova described Turkey's actions on the border with Syria as "absolute lawlessness."
“Turkey is shelling populated areas across its border and sending money, people, and materiel there, just because it simply cannot tolerate that these districts are being freed from terrorists and extremists," Zakharova said.
[Based on reporting by Reuters, AFP, and Interfax]
[ rferl.org]
17/2/16
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Anxiety about refugees streaming to its shores has led the European Union to turn an apparent blind eye to rights abuses in Turkey, whose help the EU needs to reduce the migrant influx, the European Parliament’s rapporteur on Turkey said on Tuesday...
ReplyDeleteThe number of Syrian war refugees in neighboring Turkey has swelled to 2.6 million and the EU has promised Ankara 3 billion euros to help it cope with them in the hope this will dissuade many from making onward journeys to Europe.
EU officials have also voiced renewed support for Turkey’s long-held aspiration of joining the 28-nation bloc if it does more to stem the outflow of migrants to Europe.
The European Parliament’s rapporteur on Turkey said the delay of a European Commission progress report on Ankara’s EU qualifications until after the November 2015 election, won by the party that backs President Tayyip Erdogan, suggested the bloc was staying “silent” in the face of a deteriorating rights record in Turkey....Reuters....http://kurdishdailynews.org
17/2/16