Turkey's president on Friday said the country's goals in Syria were to facilitate a political process in line with UN Security Council resolutions and put an end to ongoing civil war.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on his way back to homeland after talks in Russia, said Turkey would remain vigilant in the northwestern region of Idlib in case forces loyal to the Bashar al-Assad regime target the city or violate the latest cease-fire.
Erdogan underlined that Thursday's cease-fire deal would enhance the country's border security against regime and terror attacks, pave the way for stability and normalization in the Idlib region and ensure the safety of Turkish soldiers and civilians there.
"Our goal is to facilitate the political process in Syria in line with the UN Security Council's Resolution 2254 and bring an end to the Syrian civil war," Erdogan said, adding that the country's goal while negotiating in Russia was to reach a cease-fire.
"We will remain vigilant in case of regime attacks and violations," he said, underscoring that Turkey's offensive in Idlib last week "strongly" demonstrated its determination to respond to attacks.
"A safe corridor will be facilitated with a depth of six kilometers in [both] the northern and southern parts of the M4 highway. Meanwhile, we will launch a patrolling system with them [Russia]. This also shows the solidarity between Turkey and Russia," he said.
Erdogan added that the cease-fire could bring positive results if properly implemented by the parties, asserting that Turkey would not change the position or status of its 12 observation points across Idlib.
"It [the military situation in Idlib] is not between Russia and Turkey," he said. "It is the regime standing before us."
He emphasized that Turkish troops were in Syria to safeguard Turkey and its residents, just as they had been "defended and protected on July 15, 2016," when the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) organized a failed coup attempt that led to the death of hundreds.
- Ties with Russia, situation in Libya
Erdogan said the main issues discussed during the talks in Moscow were the developments in Idlib as well as Libya, where UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) fights renegade commander Khalifa Haftar's forces.
"I believe [Russian President Vladimir] Putin will take positive steps concerning Wagner," Erdogan said, adding that Turkey expected developments in Libya to bear similar results as those achieved during the latest talks with Russian officials.
"We have extensive and multidimensional ties with Russia in the fields of economy, trade, industry, tourism and energy," he said, adding that he invited Putin for a high-level strategic meeting in Turkey later this year.
"Developments in Syria and Idlib should not negatively affect our bilateral ties. With this in mind, we took an important step today [Thursday] and made a cease-fire deal," he said.
He went on to say that Turkey was close to receiving the final components of the S-400 missile defense system that it purchased from Moscow, adding that the hardware would be activated in April.
On the other hand, Erdogan said Turkey was willing to buy U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems as well if the Pentagon green-lighted the purchase.
- Mobilization of asylum seekers, refugees
Referring to Turkey's recently announced "open-door" policy on asylum seekers trying to reach Europe, Erdogan said Turkey's decision on the matter was final.
"We do not have time to discuss with the Greek side whether the open door is now closed, that issue is done. The refugees will go as far as they can, we are not forcing them out of our country," he said.
Erdogan emphasized that developments in Idlib were not the concern of the EU, accusing the bloc of not helping Turkey with hosting refugees.
So far, over 142,000 asylum seekers and migrants have crossed to Europe after Turkey opened its borders, accusing the EU of not fulfilling the promises it made.
The Greek reaction to irregular migrants and asylum seekers has been harsh as many were battered, tear-gassed, and at least two were killed.
