peaking about Operation Olive Branch during a live television broadcast in Syria’s northern city of Afrin, presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin stated that the military campaign was launched in order to secure Turkey’s borders and its citizens from terror threats.
n Wednesday 20 January, head of the Union of European Turkish Democrats (UETD) and former European Parliament member Zafer Sarikaya stated how Turkey’s military activity in Afrin is important for the security of Europe.
he significance of the Afrin operation for Turkey must be evaluated through two main aspects: The place of the operation in Turkey’s counter-terror efforts and Ankara’s role in the regional geopolitical equation.
urkey has been in a long on-going preparation process for an extensive military operation against the PYD/YPG, which the country deems as a threat to both its own national security and to the territorial integrity of Syria.
It was being carried out under the framework of Turkey’s rights based on international law, UN Security Council’s decisions, self-defense rights under the UN charter and respect to Syria's territorial integrity, the military added.
It was being carried out under the framework of Turkey’s rights based on international law, UN Security Council’s decisions, self-defense rights under the UN charter and respect to Syria's territorial integrity, according to the military.
n Sunday 14 January, the PYD/PKK terrorist organization located in Syria targeted the residential area in Azaz with multiple rocket attacks from the Afrin district bordering Turkey.
uring a meeting with Turkish expats in Los Angeles on Saturday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu made comments on the fight against the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), Turkey-U.
n an opinion written for Newsweek, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu described the situation in Syria not only as the “worst humanitarian crisis since World War II” but as a conflict that “encouraged the emergence of a global terrorist threat.