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Turkish Defense Minister: Turkey creates military bases in northern Syria and Iraq

Türkiye Materials 19 September 2019 11:27 (UTC +04:00)
Turkey creates permanent military bases in northern Syria and Iraq.
Turkish Defense Minister: Turkey creates military bases in northern Syria and Iraq

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

By Rufiz Hafizoglu – Trend:

Turkey creates permanent military bases in northern Syria and Iraq, said the Turkish Minister of National Defense Hulusi Akar, Trend reports referring to Turkish media.

According to him, Ankara has determined the locations where permanent military bases will be created in these countries.

He emphasized that Turkey’s goal is to create a security zone in northern Syria, which is very important for the fight against terrorism.

As previously reported, Turkey will create 10 military bases in this zone as part of the agreement reached between Washington and Ankara on the establishment of a security zone in northern Syria.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated earlier that the US was given two weeks to create a security zone in northern Syria. According to him, should the US not fulfill its promises and obligations, Ankara will take measures for creating a security zone on its own.

He also noted that Syrian refugees will be sent from Turkey to the security zone to be created in northern Syria.

Earlier, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that the actions taken by the US in relation to creating a security zone in Syria do not satisfy Ankara.

According to him, the US and Turkey have begun ground patrolling in northern Syria, but all other US actions are only "cosmetic" in nature. "The Turkish Armed Forces can enter the territory in northern Syria at any time if the US is inactive in creating a security zone," Cavusoglu said.

Turkish drones began flying over northern Syria to observe the territory as part of the agreement on the creation of the security zone in northern Syria reached between the US and Turkey on Aug. 14.

As reported, Washington and Ankara reached an agreement to establish a coordination center in Turkey's Sanliurfa Province to create a security zone in Syria.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar stated earlier that Turkey and the US would soon launch a coordination center for the creation of a security zone in Syria.

According to Akar, the US knows that Turkey will not allow the creation of any formations at its borders. He noted that Turkey insists on the depth of the security zone in northern Syria to be 30-40 kilometers. Akar stressed that the US should seize weapons from PYD / YPG terrorists.

Turkey and the US came to an agreement on the creation of a security zone in northern Syria on August 7. On June 4, 2018, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed a roadmap on Syria's Manbij during talks in Washington. Cavusoglu and Pompeo had a meeting in Brussels and discussed the Operation Olive Branch, as well as other issues.

The safety zone in the north of Syria includes a territory 32 kilometers deep and 460 kilometers long along the Syrian border with Turkey. In the case of the creation of this zone, it will be divided into two parts, the first part will start from the Iraqi-Syrian border and will be extended to the Syrian city of Qamishli, because the Syrian government forces control this city.

The second part of the safety zone will start from Qamishli and will be extended to Jarabulus city, which was liberated from the terrorists of the “Islamic State” (IS) as part of the Operation Euphrates Shield conducted by the Turkish Armed Forces in 2016.

The city of Manbij, where Turkey had previously intended to conduct anti-terrorist operations, is not a part of the safety zone.

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