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Turkish Presidential spokesman İbrahim Kalın said on Tuesday that Turkey’s military operations against the Kurdish regions in Syria and Iraq would continue uninterrupted and that a new ground operation could start at any time alongside the ongoing airstrikes.
Kalın said on AHaber, a news channel close to the Turkish government, that statements by Russia and the US expressing displeasure with the cross-border operations of the Turkish forces would not affect Turkey’s decisions in any way.
Stating that Turkey is not directly targeting American or Russian soldiers in Syria, Kalın said, “But frankly, if there are American, Russian or others’ troops at the terrorist points we are targeting, they need to reconsider this.”
The spokesman said that there is a structure divided into three parts in Syria (under the control of Russia and Iran, under the control of Turkey and under the control of the Kurdish forces with the support of the US). He noted that these three parts have remained stable for the last three years.
“But this is not an ideal situation,” Kalın said, and confirmed that the Turkish government doesn’t want Kurdish forces to be within 30 kilometres of the Turkish border.
“We will continue to do what is necessary to eliminate threats, no matter where they come from; Syria, northern Syria, Qamishla, Hesekê, Tal Rifaat, Kobani or Manbij,” he added.
Stating that US Central Command (CENTCOM) has always supported the People’s Protection Units (YPG) / the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and reported to Washington in this direction, Kalın argued that ISIS prisons under the control of Kurdish forces in Syria became a lever to justify the existence of these groups.
Kalın also claimed that the preservation of Syria’s territorial integrity was achieved thanks to Turkey’s military operations.
Stating that one-third of the country is under the control of Kurdish forces, Kalın stated that the normalisation process in the relations between Syria and Turkey depends on whether the Assad administration will take a stand against these elements under its own territory.
In response to the question of whether an operation against Tal Rifaat, where Russian forces are located, would disrupt relations with Russia, Kalın admitted that such operations were carried out in consultation with Russia and that the airspace was used with Russia’s approval in the recent airstrikes.
The Turkish government has been conducting military operations in Syria since 2016. Turkey’s recent airstrikes against North and East Syria have continued unabated since 19 November. International law experts do not agree with the way Turkey is exercising its right of self-defence.
