Turkey’s goal in Syria is to counter terrorism, Ambassador Yà¶rà¼k says
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- The ambassador said the goals of Turkey’s Olive Branch military operation against Kurdish forces in northern Syria are “to remove all terrorists,” preserve Syria’s territory and “help displaced Syrian persons return home.”
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Ambassador Murat Ahmet Yà¶rà¼k during the press conference on Olive Branch operation (Photo: Handout)
TIRANA, Jan. 30 – Turkey’s ambassador to Tirana gave a press conference for Albanian media Wednesday to provide direct information on Ankara’s military operation against Kurdish forces in Syria’s Afrin region and to answer questions on the countries’ bilateral relations.
Ambassador Murat Ahmet Yà¶rà¼k said the goals of Turkey’s Olive Branch military operation against Kurdish forces in northern Syria are “to remove all terrorists,” preserve Syria’s territory and “help displaced Syrian persons return home.”
Yà¶rà¼k said Turkish military has been attacked by Kurdish terrorist organizations repeatedly, which in turn brought the need for this operation to secure the country’s borders, neutralize terrorists and save the country and the region from them.
He added the operation is based on the UN’s Article 51 and that the Turkish government took measures prior its start to inform both NATO and the Syrian Embassy.
Yà¶rà¼k also added no civilians have been harmed from the operation so far, while camps have been created for hurt of displaced individuals.
In this context, he called on all allies, including Albania, to support Turkey’s military initiative.
Operation Olive Branch has been received both positively and negatively at home and abroad.
Some international media have criticized the operation, saying it is allegedly an offensive against Kurds, rather than terrorists.
Turkey, however, sees the organization controlling the area, PKK, and all its organic extensions as terrorist organizations.
Another point of critique has been the territorial integrity of Syria, which Turkey has been accused of allegedly not respecting with this intervention.
Concerning this, Yà¶rà¼k said preserving Syria’s territory is of uttermost importance to Turkey, while its only goal is to combat terrorism.
Ambassador Yà¶rà¼k was asked about the Kurdish issue during the conference, to which he replied that the Kurdish population in the area has been gravely affected by the terrorists, and thus they are supportive of the operation.
Ambassador Yà¶rà¼k has only recently been appointed to Tirana. This was the first press conference for Albanian media, aiming to provide first-hand information on Olive Branch and highlight the historically friendly and supportive relations between the two countries.
Among other, Ambassador Yà¶rà¼k confirmed the consortium building Istanbul’s third and biggest in the world airport has offered to build Vlora’s new airport, which was approved in parliament last week.
Turkish investments in the country mount to $2.7 billion, making Turkey the second biggest investor in Albania.
Albania, a NATO member since 2009, has had a long military cooperation with with fellow NATO member Turkey.
