They said: Ankara will not ask permission from Moscow or Washington to launch a military operation in Syria

The spokesman for the Turkish Republic, Ibrahim Kalin, said that the military response that his country took in Syria against the PKK and the Kurdish People's Protection Units following the attack that took place on Taksim Street last month came after an evaluation by the Ministry of Defense, the Turkish Intelligence Agency and all concerned authorities in the country.

He stressed that the Turkish authorities have evidence that the PKK and the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) planned the recent attacks, and pointed to a change in the mechanism for carrying out their attacks, as they began to rely on non-Kurdish elements to carry out their attacks.

Kalin stressed in statements to the program of the meeting today, Monday, on (6/12/2022), that Ankara is moving forward with the implementation of the military operation that these Kurdish parties on the Syrian territory promised, and that it is working to coordinate in this regard with its American and Russian allies, and that it does not ask for light. green from one.

Regarding the American concern about the repercussions of this operation, the Turkish presidential spokesman confirmed that Ankara has reassured the Americans, the Russians and the Iranians that the military operation will not target their forces in Syria, their security points, or civilians, nor will it target the Syrian regime, but rather it will focus only and accurately on Kurdish forces seeking to destabilize Turkey's national security.

Regarding the American fears that the Turkish military operation in Syria would lead to the return of al-Qaeda control, Kalin played down these fears and said that the Kurdish forces are using about 10 ISIS prisoners as hostages, using them as scarecrows to exploit the United States and the West.

He said, "If America is concerned about the Turkish military operation in Syria, we tell it, "We are subjected to terrorist attacks and we are losing lives in these attacks."

As for the geographical and temporal scope of the planned military operation, Kalin indicated that the operation aims to reach all elements affiliated with the Kurdish forces and the PKK that are on Syrian territory and threaten Turkey's national security.

He stressed that the United States did not provide guarantees regarding the withdrawal of these forces from the areas near the border with Turkey, and said that the PKK forces and the Kurdish People's Units did not abide by the agreement signed with them years ago with Western mediation, and therefore Ankara is determined to proceed with the military operation to protect its national security. .

Regarding Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's declaration of his willingness to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, after years of estrangement due to Turkey's support for the revolution in Syria, Kalin said that Erdogan does not mind proceeding with the political process with Damascus if Assad begins to correct the political course in his country, noting that he There is no plan to meet yet.

Kalin denied that there are any channels of direct communication between Ankara and Damascus, and said that communication takes place through mediators such as Russia or Iran to discuss political and humanitarian issues related to Syrian refugees and the rights of civilians.

The Turkish official stressed that his country's position on the Syrian opposition will never change, despite the change in the positions of many international and regional powers, and indicated in this regard that his country embraces about 4 million Syrian refugees.

Kalin talked about the change in his country's policy towards Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Gulf countries in the region, including the UAE and Saudi Arabia. He said that the change resulted from events that took place in the past years, and that many countries in the region have reviewed their foreign policies and orientations towards Turkey and other countries.

Therefore, Ankara decided to open a new page with these countries, and focus on promoting common interests, including the United Arab Emirates, which Ankara accused of supporting the coup attempt in 2016.

As for a meeting between Erdogan and the Egyptian president, he said that there is no plan yet, but it is important that the handshake took place between the officials.

With regard to Turkey's fears of the growing Iranian influence in the region, the Turkish official said that Ankara seeks to work and coordinate with Iran instead of the policy of ostracism and neglect, as it seeks to coordinate with it to achieve interests for all.

Regarding his country's position rejecting Sweden and Finland's accession to NATO, he said that these two countries include elements targeting Turkey's national security, and Ankara has the right not to agree to its accession before settling this matter, indicating that there has been progress in this field, especially with Sweden, which enacted legislation and laws that would reassure the side. Turkish.

On the issue of Turkey maintaining its relations with Moscow and Washington at the same time, he stressed that this is required and important, because there must be a party capable of communicating with Russia when the time comes for negotiations.

In his view of the war that Russia is waging against Ukraine, he stressed that it is the beginning of the Cold War and that such a war will ignite in more than one country, stressing the need for a new geopolitical system, in which the international scene is reorganized, so that no party feels excluded or that it is underpowered.