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Russia, US can’t dictate terms to Turkey, says PM

Türkiye Materials 19 April 2016 10:46 (UTC +04:00)
Russia and the US have no right to put terms before Turkey for the Turkish-Syrian border’s closure.
Russia, US can’t dictate terms to Turkey, says PM

Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 19

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

Russia and the US have no right to put terms before Turkey for the Turkish-Syrian border's closure, Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said.

He said the situation on the border with Syria is Ankara's internal issue, TRT Haber news channel reported Apr. 19.

"Only Turkey has the right to settle the situation within its borders," said Davutoglu.

The Turkish-Syrian border is the only hope of the Syrian refugees, who are fleeing from the war in their country, he said.

It was earlier reported that the US President Barack Obama and the Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed a number of issues, including the Turkish-Syrian border's closure during their last phone talk.

Currently there are more than two million Syrian refugees in Turkey. Syrian refugee camps in that country accommodate about 300,000 people. The rest of the refugees are spread throughout the provinces and cities of Turkey. In Istanbul alone, there are currently 40,000 refugees from Syria.

Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed the lives of over 220,000 people.

Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The "Islamic State" (IS, aka ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) and Jabhat al-Nusra are the most active terrorist groups in Syria.

Edited by SI

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu

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