MOSCOW, November 19. /TASS/. Turkey is trying to cement its presence on the occupied Syrian territories by employing the policy of Turkification, Syrian Ambassador to Moscow Riad Haddad said Tuesday at a session of the Russian Federation Council (upper chamber) convened to discuss protection of national sovereignty.
"Turkey did not stop at hoisting its flag over the occupied territories. It also opened governmental Turkish establishments, is advancing the Turkification policy and changed its school curriculum as if to say, "we returned to the Medieval times when any state could seize a territory off another sovereign state, disregarding international law designed to spare the world from the scoured of war," he underlined.
The Syrian diplomat stressed that his country had fallen victim to "a new kind of infringement upon sovereignty of state and interference in its domestic affairs" when external players brazenly support terrorist groups. "These gangs received military, political and financial aid from the countries who forgot that such actions are outlawed by the international law," Haddad pointed out. "Not only did these countries finance and support terrorism, they also pursued aggression against Syria’s sovereignty by illegally deploying their troops on my country’s territory establishing their control over areas in the eastern region where US, French and British troops are present that are stealing natural treasures of the Syrian people."
On October 9, Ankara launched a new military operation in northern Syria dubbed Peace Spring, which began with airstrikes on positions of Kurdish units. The objective is to create a buffer zone in northern Syria where Syrians refugees could return, Ankara claims. The buffer zone will also establish a security belt for the Turkish border. The Syrian SANA news agency branded the operation as aggression, while the international community condemned Ankara’s actions.
On October 13, SANA reported that Damascus had struck a deal with Kurds and sent troops to north Syria to oppose the Turkish army. In the next few days, the Syrian army took control over a number of cities and towns in Kurdish regions without any fighting, including Al-Tabqah, Manbij, Raqqa and Kobane. On October 17, Syrian army units reached the Turkish border.
On October 22, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed a memorandum on joint actions in northeastern Syria. According to the document, as of noon October 23, Russian military police and Syrian border guards started to monitor the withdrawal of Kurdish military formations to the depth of 30 km from the border. On the outcomes of the agreement, Ankara stated that it had suspended its large-scale military operation in the area. However, Turkey retains control over the territories where it plans to relocate Syrian refugees in the future.
The deadline for the Kurdish forces to withdraw expired on October 29, 18:00 local time. Turkey and Russia began joint patrolling in northeastern Syria on November 1.