Syria assured Israel that there were no plans to establish a Turkish military base at Abu al-Duhur Airport, which Israel struck on Tuesday, said Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Saybani, rejecting claims of a Turkish military deployment in the area.
Mr. Saibani noted that the airport was being renovated for use by the Syrian Air Force and that Turkish military personnel had visited the facilities as part oftraining activities and broader military cooperation between Damascus and Ankara.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
In an interview with Axios on Wednesday, the Syrian Foreign Minister maintained that the facilities remained largely empty and had not yet become operational.
“There was no intention to establish a Turkish base there, nor to establish a permanent Turkish military presence or deploy Turkish forces in the region,” he said.
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For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated on Wednesday that Israel had warned Syria prior to the strike not to allow a Turkish presence at that particular airbase.
“Our message was very clear. Don’t do it. I suppose they didn’t quite get the message,” Mr. Netanyahu said.
Mr. Saibani argued that Israel had no legal justification for the bombing, adding, however, that Syria remains open to negotiations with Israel aimed at de-escalation.
According to him, the two sides had made significant progress toward reaching a security agreement during a year of talks mediated by the United States. He argued, however, that Israel subsequently reneged on the commitments it had made, resulting in the agreement not being implemented.
The Syrian Foreign Minister stressed that any future agreement must take into account the security concerns of both sides and respect Syrian sovereignty, warning that the continuation of Israeli military operations would exacerbate instability in the region.
SOURCE: KYPE
