© AFPTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemnded Russia's bombing campaign in Syria
Moscow's bombing campaign in Syria is "unacceptable", Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Sunday, warning that Russia was making a "grave mistake".
"The steps Russia is taking and the bombing campaign in Syria is unacceptable in any way for Turkey... Unfortunately, Russia is making a grave mistake," Erdogan told a news conference at Istanbul airport before leaving for a visit to France.
Given Moscow's friendly relations with Turkey, its actions in Syria are "worrying and disturbing," Erdogan said, warning that they would "isolate Russia in the region".
Russia and Turkey have long been at odds over the crisis in Syria, with Moscow emerging as Assad's key international backer and Ankara urging his ouster as the only solution to the conflict.
Erdogan said that it is "not only Russia but also Iran defending (Assad) who is waging state terror" in Syria.
Russia, which began strikes in Syria last week, insisted it only targeted the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group in its air strikes.
But Turkey and several of its Western allies have said that moderate groups fighting the Assad regime were hit.
Comment: These statements from Recep Tayyip Erdogan should come to no surprise to anyone. He, after all, has a lot invested in seeing that Assad's government be toppled. From
this article we learn that:
The real reason the no-fly zone issue has resurfaced is because it was one of the concessions Obama made to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the use of Incirlik airbase.
[...]
Turkey had three demands:
1 - Safe zones in north Syria (which means that Turkey would basically annex a good portion of Syrian sovereign territory.)
2 - A no-fly zone (which would allow either Turkish troops, US Special Forces or US-backed jihadi militants to conduct their military operations with the support of US air cover.)
3 - A commitment from the US that it will help Turkey remove Assad.
Did Obama agree to all three of these demands before Erdogan agreed to let the USAF use Incirlik?
Yes, at least I think he did, which is why I think we are at the beginning of Phase 2 of the US aggression against Syria. Incirlik changes everything. US bombers, drones and fighters can enter Syrian airspace in just 15 minutes instead of 3 to 4 hours from Bahrain. That means more sorties, more surveillance drones, and more air-cover for US-backed militias and Special Forces on the ground. It means the US can impose a de facto no-fly zone over most of Syria that will expose and weaken Syrian forces tipping the odds decisively in favor of Obama's jihadi army. Incirlik is a game-changer, the cornerstone of US policy in Syria. With access to Incirlik, victory is within Washington's reach. That's how important Incirlik is.
And that's why the normally-cautious Putin decided to deploy his warplanes, troops and weaponry so soon after the Incirlik deal was signed. He could see the handwriting on the wall. He knew he had to either act fast and turn the tide or accept the fact that the US and Turkey were going to topple Assad sometime after Turkey's snap elections on November 1. That was his timeline for action. So he did the right thing and joined the fighting.
Comment: These statements from Recep Tayyip Erdogan should come to no surprise to anyone. He, after all, has a lot invested in seeing that Assad's government be toppled. From this article we learn that: