Turkey will not miss the opportunity to conduct an even more decisive military operation in the Syrian province of Idlib.
This statement was made on Wednesday, March 11, by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaking in parliament before the deputies of his own Justice and Development Party.
He pointed out that in the Idlib de-escalation zone, numerous cases of violation of the ceasefire, which had previously been announced in the framework of agreements with the Russian side, were recorded. In this regard, Erdogan threatened to restart the offensive if the situation in the region does not change.
According to him, the priority for the Turkish leadership is to ensure the security of the so-called observation posts – fortifications that were built in Idlib and now serve as strongholds for the Turkish army and Ankara-loyal militants.
As News Front previously reported, in February, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan decided on a risky military adventure in the Idlib de-escalation zone. He sent troops in support of illegal armed groups to force the Syrian army to retreat. However, the operation got bogged down, NATO refused to provide support, and Russia made it clear that it would continue to contribute to the liberation of Syria. As a result, Erdogan tempered his ambitions and went on March 5 to negotiate with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Then the parties came to an agreement to resolve the situation, and in Idlib a silence regime was introduced.
It is noteworthy that since then Turkey has not stopped building up the armed forces in the territory of a neighboring country. The expert community, however, believed that a new round of conflict would happen by summer.