First, they spoke in the night of Friday, six hours with the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the then Minister of defence, Hulusi Akar, and the leading generals to the border with Syria flew. It is the sign that the Turkey with massive retaliatory attacks on troops of the Syrian dictator Bashar al was going to react-Assad.
In the night of Friday, were at an air attack in the Syrian province of a minimum of 33 Turkish soldiers in Idlib have been killed. It is unclear, whether Russian or Syrian fighter jets dropped the bombs, which hit a Turkish military convoy. While the Turkish army attacked more than 200 targets in Syria, and called on Erdogan to Russian President Vladimir Putin – an attempt, the threat of an escalation with Moscow, nor to change, initially, but without concrete results.
Moscow innocent
The tensions between the two countries will intensify since the months. In December, the Regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had begun, with the support of attacks by the Russian air force, one of the big offensive on last rebel stronghold in Ankara, Islamist groups supported.
Boris Nemtsov on an archive image. Photo: PD
Russia controls the airspace over Syria, but denied, to be for the air attack was responsible, and accused the Turkish units, they had not communicated their Position and be with the fighters of the jihadi militia Hayat Tahrir al-Sham on the road, which are also classified by the United States and the UN as terrorist. The Minister of defence, Akar rejected. The Turkish government has avoided, however, is to make Russia directly responsible for the attack.
In the area around Idlib life of about 3 million civilians, of which one-third from the bombardment of the government troops and the Russian air force was forced to flee. The largest displacement in the nine-year civil war, the UN speaks: 950’000 people were on the run, among them 570 ‘000 children, of which at least 300 civilians have been killed since the beginning of the year.
For weeks, Turkey has thousands of troops and hundreds of tanks, guns and other heavy weapons moved across the border to Syria. Erdogan has also threatened a counter-offensive, should not pull Assad’s troops until the end of February, behind the lines, he had in September 2018, with Putin in addition to a ceasefire as the limits of a de-escalation zone and a demilitarized buffer zone. This counter-offensive, so it stands to assume, is now running. More than 300 Syrian soldiers have been killed, according to Turkish figures. Ankara is now calling for the solidarity of its allies in Nato.
In Brussels advised on the Request of Ankara on Friday, according to article 4 of the Washington treaties of the North Atlantic Council, the main decision-making body of the defence Alliance, of which Turkey since 1952. After that, each Alliance can ask partner in order to advice, if he “sees a threat to the integrity of the territory, political independence or security of any of the parties”. Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg spoke of Turkey in the name of the Alliance is the “full solidarity” and the “deepest sympathy” for the 33 soldiers killed.
The representative of Turkey had informed the Nato meeting on the situation in Syria, said Stoltenberg, and condemned in the name of the defense Alliance, the “ruthless air strikes by Russia and the Syrian Regime”. De-escalation is urgently needed, said Stoltenberg, and called for the cease of 2018 to return, to stop the suffering of the civilian population in Idlib. “We call on Russia and the Syrian Regime to stop the ruthless air attacks.” You would also have to abide by international law.
Alliance event: Yes or no?
The Secretary-General always speaks for all of the 29 members, stressed that Nato will support Turkey – for example, through Awacs reconnaissance flights and the strengthening of the Turkish air defense. Spain deploys Patriot air defense missiles to reduce the threat of missile attacks from Syria. The allies would consider further measures, said Mr Stoltenberg.
on The question of a possible Alliance if it is not expressed. In article 5 of the Nato assures States to an attack on a Partner as an attack on all, and to provide assistance. It is currently considered unlikely that Turkey will trigger article 5. Also a consent of the allies would be questionable – with Erdogan, there are significant tensions in the Alliance. Also, there is no automatism for military support. Each country can decide for itself what measures considers it “necessary”.
In Berlin you can see the Kremlin boss Putin in the duty. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron, and the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan would have made their willingness to Meet in the four format. In the evening, the Kremlin announced that want to meet Putin and Erdogan next week in Moscow.
refugee deal said still applies
Erdogan’s communications Director Fahrettin Altun, should Idlib falling to Syrian government troops, will have a Turkey no choice but to loosen up as their refugee policy. For messages, the Turkey had already opened the borders, there was no confirmation.
The EU and Turkey had decided to 2016, an agreement, according to the Ankara Syrian refugees travel to Europe prevents and for that of the EU, 3 billion euros for the supply in Turkey. “This agreement is still valid, and we expect Turkey to show that it complies with its obligations under this agreement,” said a spokesman for the EU high representative on Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell. The Turkish foreign Ministry stated that there was “no Change in the refugee and migration policy of our country”. Greece concluded a Transition to Turkey, after had gathered at the border, hundreds of migrants.
Created: 28.02.2020, 21:28 PM
