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Syria says it does not want to fight with Turkey

News Service
09:08 - 18/06/2019 Salı
Update: 14:21 - 18/06/2019 Salı
REUTERS
File photo
File photo

Syria does not want to see fighting with Turkey, its foreign minister said on Tuesday, after Turkey said one of its observation posts in Syria's Idlib region was attacked from an area controlled by Syrian government forces.

Russia, which supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his country's civil war, and Turkey, long a backer of the opposition, co-sponsored a de-escalation pact for the area that has been in place since last year.

But the deal has faltered in recent months, forcing hundreds of thousands of civilians to flee. Idlib is the last remaining bastion of anti-government rebels after eight years of civil war.

"We hope that our military and the Turkish military do not fight. This is our principled stance," Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem told reporters in Beijing, standing alongside the Chinese government's top diplomat, State Councillor Wang Yi.

"What we are fighting is terrorists, especially in Idlib, which is Syrian territory, part of our country," Moualem said in Arabic comments translated into Chinese.

Since April, Syrian government forces have stepped up shelling and bombing of the area, killing scores of people.

The opposition says the government action is part of a campaign for an assault that would breach the de-escalation pact.

The government and its Russian allies say the action is in response to opposition violations, including the presence of fighters in a demilitarised zone.

China has long urged that a diplomatic resolution to the Syrian civil war be found and has hosted Syrian government and opposition figures.

Wang said that China will continue to support Syria to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity and fight against terror, and will help with Syria's economic reconstruction efforts.


#Syria
#Turkey
#Idlib
#civil war
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