Ankara will resume its operation in Syria if terrorist attacks continue, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday
ANKARA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th October, 2019) Ankara will resume its operation in Syria if terrorist attacks continue, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday."Our operation has been successful. But if terrorists reappear in the negotiated zone, we will have the right to crush them. And if they continue attacks, we will continue our operation," Erdogan said in Ankara.
According to him, Turkey has always considered a military option to be an extreme measure.
"But the situation has brought us here. We informed all sides about the start of the operation. However, we do not need permission from anyone. Finally, our partners have heard us. First, we agreed with the United States on the withdrawal of terrorists within 120 hours. As the term expired, we were notified by the United States in writing form that the agreement was fulfilled on its part. On Tuesday, we agreed with Russia [on a safe zone]," Erdogan said.
According to him, seven Turkish servicemen and 96 fighters from the Free Syrian Army were killed during the Turkish Armed Forces' operation in Syria.
On October 9, Turkey launched Operation Peace Spring in northeastern Syria to clear the area of Kurdish and Islamic State terrorist group (banned in Russia) fighters. The United States and Turkey on October 17 reached an agreement on a 120-hour ceasefire in the area to allow for the withdrawal of the Kurdish fighters.
As the five-day ceasefire came to an end, Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin reached a deal late on Tuesday to pull the Kurdish fighters back and establish joint patrols in the operation zone in northeastern Syria along the Turkish border.
