Firmly Warns Syria And Ready To Deploy Heavy Weapons, President Erdoan: No Compromise

Illustration of a Turkish and US military convoy in Syria. (Wikimedia Commons/Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve/Spc. Arnada Jones)

JAKARTA - Turkey will deploy heavy weapons throughout Syria to confront the army in the country if necessary, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stressed.

This comment was made by President Erdogan in a press statement on the presidential plane, on his way back after a visit to the African region, to visit three countries, including Angola, Togo and Nigeria.

"Currently, our operations are continuing at key points in the region, there is absolutely no compromise. We are continuing this process in Syria. At the moment I don't know what position the regime (the internationally recognized Syrian President) is taking," he stressed. citing Sputnik News October 21.

"We continue to do everything necessary, especially against this approach in Idlib, and we will continue to respond with all our heavy weapons. We will not leave this situation as it is," President Erdogan continued.

Turkey has carried out three separate incursions into northern Syria over the past five years, mostly against the US-backed Syrian Kurdish militia calling themselves the Syrian Democratic Forces, but also in support of rebranded "former terrorists" in Syria's northwestern region, Idlib.

Damascus accuses Turkey and the United States of occupying and looting its territory illegally, accusing Turkish troops of being involved in ethnic cleansing. Ankara has denied the allegations, while Washington dishonestly claims its presence in Syria is linked to the threat of a resurgent Daesh (ISIS).

Last week, a source told Sputnik that two Turkish soldiers had been killed in Idlib by jihadist militants. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu accused Russia and the United States of failing to fulfill their responsibilities in Syria, claiming both countries were equally responsible for Syrian Kurdish attacks on Turkish-occupied territories in the country.

On Thursday, local sources told the Syrian Arab News Agency, Turkey has deployed convoys of military equipment and trucks loaded with ammunition to the Idlib region for use by Turkey-backed militias in the city of Idlib and its surroundings. The convoy of 31 vehicles is said to include anti-tank rockets and portable air defense systems.