Erdogan says that nobody should be ‘disturbed’ by Turkey’s military operations

Turkish President Recep Erdogan said on Monday (November 28) that nobody should be “disturbed” by the country’s military operations into Syria, which are aimed at expanding its circle of security and peace. He reiterated the nation’s determination to form a 30-kilometre-long security corridor along the southern border with Syria. 

Erdogan recently said that the Turkish military could launch ground operations in northern Syria and Iraq besides the air campaigns. 

But Russia urged Turkey to exercise “restraint” and warned against “destabilising” Syria. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had said that Moscow understands Turkey’s concerns regarding its security, but also called on all parties to refrain from steps that could lead to “seriously destabilising the situation”.

Erdogan said, “Nobody should be disturbed by Turkey’s military operations aimed at expanding its circle of security and peace. Because in the history of this country, there is no colonisation, no brutality, no selfishness, and there is no cruelty.” 

Turkey also carried out strategic air strikes against the bases of Kurdish militants across northern Syria and Iraq. Erdogan’s administration claimed that those bases were used to launch “terrorist” attacks on Turkish soil. 

The strikes came a week after a bomb attack in Istanbul killed six people and left 81 wounded, which Ankara blamed on the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). But the Kurdish groups and authorities have denied the allegations. 

While speaking after a cabinet meeting in the capital Ankara, the Turkish president further said: “The due date of these terrorists has now passed as their concrete tunnels in which they take refuge today, will soon become their graves.” 

“Neither the countries they trust so much, nor the terror barons who put their lives on the market will be able to save them from the tragic fate that awaits at the end,” he added. 

Turkish officials said that the army just needs a few days to prepare for a ground incursion into northern Syria. A concrete decision regarding this was expected to come at a cabinet meeting on Monday. 

But, Erdogan did not directly address it. But it is said that a formal decision might be anounced after the cabinet meeting.