SYRIA is fully prepared to respond to any attempted Turkish military offensive, its armed forces said today as its troops gathered close to the border in anticipation of an invasion.
“In the wake of an upsurge in attacks by Turkish military forces on Syrian territories over the past two days and shelling on different neighbourhoods and a number of [Syrian] army positions, we reiterate that our valiant army is ready to confront any possible aggression by the Turkish regime and its allied militants,” a military spokesman said.
Turkey’s bullish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened to launch a new invasion to create a 30 kilometre (18.6 mile) buffer zone which he says is necessary to protect his country from terrorist attacks.
He says he will target the Kurdish-led People’s Protection Units which shares an organisational link with the Kurdistan Workers Party and take control of Manbij and Tal Abyad.
But he was warned against such a move by both Iran and Russia last week as they met for trilateral talks in Tehran, with Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei saying it would destabilise the region and boost terrorist groups.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has previously said that his forces will resist any Turkish attack with all legitimate means.
On Tuesday, the Syrian Arab Army conducted night parachute jump exercises in co-operation with Russian trainers, which the military said showed the commitment of the two countries in fighting terrorism.
The Damascus government has repeatedly called for Turkish and US occupying forces to leave the country and for an end to punitive sanctions imposed by Washington.
“The aggressive threats of the Turkish regime pose a blatant violation of the international law and the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Syria,” the Syrian Foreign Ministry said earlier this month.
A base used by the US military in the northern Hasakah province was hit by a suspected missile attack today.
Several explosions were reported by local sources in the northern and western suburbs of the oil-rich town of al-Shaddadi, the location of one of Washington’s largest bases.
It is the second time in recent months the base has been struck by missiles. No group had claimed responsibility at the time the Morning Star went to print.
Washington has a limited troop presence in areas under the control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. The occupying force is accused of plundering the regions resources, including oil and wheat.
Source: Morning Star
