Turkey says it may launch a cross-border operation into the Kurdish-controlled enclave of Afrin in northern Syria if it constitutes a “constant security threat.”
Defence Minister Fikri Isik told state-run television TRT on Tuesday that Turkey’s military will continue to respond to the “slightest fire” into Turkish territory from Afrin. He spoke hours after reports that Turkey’s military retaliated overnight to fire from areas controlled by Syrian Kurdish groups.
Turkey considers the main Syrian Kurdish militia, which is supported by the United States, to be an extension of Kurdish rebels fighting in Turkey. The U.S. views the Syrian Kurds as the most effective ground force battling the Islamic State group in Syria.
Last year, Turkey sent troops into Syria to help Syrian opposition forces battling to oust Islamic State militants from another border region and to curb the territorial advances of the Syrian Kurdish militia.
Isik said: “We would not abstain from doing what is necessary if Afrin becomes a constant security threat.
