Russia concerned about possible Turkish op in Syria - Foreign Ministry

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The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed on Thursday its concern about the Turkish military operation in northern Syria, hoping that Ankara "refrain" from launching an offensive operation in Northern Syria to avoid "provoking an additional escalation of tensions" in the country.

"We received with alarm reports of such a forceful operation. Such a step, in the absence of the consent of the legitimate government of Syria, would constitute a direct violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, and would provoke an additional escalation of tension in this country," the Russian Foreign Ministry statement said.

The statement added, "We understand Turkey's concerns about threats to national security emanating from the border regions" with Syria, but the problem can only be solved if Syrian troops are deployed in the area.

Sources to Al Mayadeen: Russian reinforcements in northeast Syria

Al Mayadeen's sources reported a few days ago that the Russian forces in Qameshli Airport in northern Syria are introducing new military reinforcements to their base.

The sources noted that the reinforcements include a chopper and military aircraft that landed in the airport, stressing that these reinforcements arrived as part of a Russian plan to reinforce military presence in northeast Syria.

Syria's Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, said last Thursday that Moscow will continue to support the Syrian leadership in restoring the entirety of Syrian land.

This came after an announcement by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who said that he plans on launching military operations to combat "terrorism" at Turkey's borders, adding that the decision regarding these operations will be resumed soon.

The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs had announced earlier in a statement, that "the cheap statements of the head of the Turkish regime about the establishment of a 'safe zone' in northern Syria reveal the aggressive games that this regime is plotting against Syria and the unity of its land and people."

The Foreign Ministry described what Erdogan and the Turkish authorities are doing as "vile bargains, which show the lack of the minimum political and moral understanding to deal with the crisis in Syria."

Iran against Turkey's military operation in Syria

The Spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, Saeed Khatibzadeh said in response to a question on Turkey's possible military operation in Syria that Iran opposes "any military action and the use of force on the territory of other countries in order to resolve disputes between them."

Khatibzadeh further said that Iran considers such military action to be "a violation of the territorial integrity and national sovereignty of those countries," according to the Mehr News Agency.