Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 18
By Orkhan Quluzade - Trend:
Turkey may be under risk of clashing with Russia if it launches military operations in Syria, an ex-commander of the Turkish Navy believes.
Clash of interests of a number of countries in the Syrian crisis is a serious risk for Turkey, Admiral Meten Atac, member of the Advisory Board of the Caspian Strategy Institute (HASEN), said in an exclusive interview with Trend.
The admiral also said that at present, one of Turkey's problems is the problem with Syrian refugees.
"At present, more than three million people left Syria and a huge number of refugees are moving to the Turkish border," he said.
Earlier, media reported that along with Saudi Arabia and Qatar, Turkey is preparing for holding ground military operations in Syria.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Feb. 17 that Turkey does not negotiate with the coalition led by the US concerning the participation in the military operations in Syria.
Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz has recently said that Ankara does not plan to carry out military operations in Syria, but the Turkish armed forces are ready to resist any threat from the territory of this country.
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