Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 24
By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:
Moscow, holding joint military actions with Syria's army against Turkomans in Syria, is jeopardizing its relations with Turkey, a source in Turkish president's administration told Trend Nov. 24.
The Syrian Turkomans are Turkic people living in the north of Syria. This is one of the largest ethnic groups in the country, the third largest after the Arabs and Kurds.
"Turkomans in Syria have nothing to do with terrorist groups in the country," said the source.
The interviewee also noted that against this background, it seems that Russia is deliberately trying to spoil relations with Turkey.
"Turkey can regard the military operations against the Syrian Turkomans as the beginning of ethnic cleansing against the Turkic-speaking population in the region," the source added.
Earlier, Turkey's Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian Ambassador Andrei Karlov to express him the protest with regard to the air strikes on Turkoman settlements in Syria.