Turkish PM issues border warning for Syria
Source: Agencies |
June 27, 2012, Wednesday
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TURKEY warned yesterday that any Syrian military unit approaching its border would be treated as a direct threat, a serious escalation in tensions days after Syria shot a Turkish military plane out of the sky.
Turkey's NATO allies expressed solidarity with Ankara and condemned the Syrian attack but made no mention of any retaliatory action against Syria.
"The rules of engagement of the Turkish Armed Forces have changed," Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a televised speech. "Any military element that approaches the Turkish border from Syria and poses a security risk and danger will be regarded as a threat and treated as a military target." He added: "No one should be deceived by our cool-headed stance. Our acting with common sense should not be perceived as a weakness."
Syria insists the Turkish military plane violated its airspace on Friday. Turkey says that although the RF-4E reconnaissance jet had unintentionally strayed into Syria's airspace, it was inside international airspace when it was brought down over the Mediterranean. Its two pilots are still missing.
The head of the NATO military alliance yesterday called the downing of the jet unacceptable after Turkey briefed NATO's North Atlantic Council on the incident.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the alliance condemned the Syrian attack "in the strongest terms" and expressed solidarity with Turkey but did not mention any possible armed action against Syria.
"It's my clear expectation that the situation won't continue to escalate," Fogh Rasmussen told reporters after yesterday's meeting. "What we have seen is a completely unacceptable act and I would expect Syria to take all necessary steps to avoid such events in the future."
Erdogan said Syria shot down the unarmed plane in international airspace without warning in a "deliberate" and "hostile" act. He said border violations in the region were not uncommon and Syrian helicopters had violated Turkish airspace five times recently without a Turkish response. The two countries share a 910-kilometer border.
Syria said the downing was an accident caused by the "automatic response" of an officer commanding an anti-aircraft position who saw an unidentified jet flying at high speed and low altitude.
Erdogan said Syrian forces also fired on a search-and-rescue plane on Friday following the downing of the jet. It was not clear if the second plane was hit.
Turkey's NATO allies expressed solidarity with Ankara and condemned the Syrian attack but made no mention of any retaliatory action against Syria.
"The rules of engagement of the Turkish Armed Forces have changed," Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a televised speech. "Any military element that approaches the Turkish border from Syria and poses a security risk and danger will be regarded as a threat and treated as a military target." He added: "No one should be deceived by our cool-headed stance. Our acting with common sense should not be perceived as a weakness."
Syria insists the Turkish military plane violated its airspace on Friday. Turkey says that although the RF-4E reconnaissance jet had unintentionally strayed into Syria's airspace, it was inside international airspace when it was brought down over the Mediterranean. Its two pilots are still missing.
The head of the NATO military alliance yesterday called the downing of the jet unacceptable after Turkey briefed NATO's North Atlantic Council on the incident.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the alliance condemned the Syrian attack "in the strongest terms" and expressed solidarity with Turkey but did not mention any possible armed action against Syria.
"It's my clear expectation that the situation won't continue to escalate," Fogh Rasmussen told reporters after yesterday's meeting. "What we have seen is a completely unacceptable act and I would expect Syria to take all necessary steps to avoid such events in the future."
Erdogan said Syria shot down the unarmed plane in international airspace without warning in a "deliberate" and "hostile" act. He said border violations in the region were not uncommon and Syrian helicopters had violated Turkish airspace five times recently without a Turkish response. The two countries share a 910-kilometer border.
Syria said the downing was an accident caused by the "automatic response" of an officer commanding an anti-aircraft position who saw an unidentified jet flying at high speed and low altitude.
Erdogan said Syrian forces also fired on a search-and-rescue plane on Friday following the downing of the jet. It was not clear if the second plane was hit.
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