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Turkey Wants To Extend Mandate To Send Troops Into Syria

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  • Turkey Wants To Extend Mandate To Send Troops Into Syria

    TURKEY WANTS TO EXTEND MANDATE TO SEND TROOPS INTO SYRIA

    October 2, 2013 - 19:01 AMT

    PanARMENIAN.Net - The Turkish parliament is likely to extend by a year
    a mandate authorizing the sending of troops into Syria if needed after
    the government said the possible use of chemical weapons by President
    Bashar al-Assad posed a threat to Turkey, according to Reuters.

    The government motion, due to be voted on by parliament on Thursday,
    Oct 3, paints a bleak picture of the conflict in its southern neighbor
    and says Turkey would be the country the most affected by escalating
    violence there.

    "Developments show that the Syrian regime has reached a point where
    it is ready to use any methods or weapons against international law,"
    the motion said.

    Ankara and Western nations have blamed Syrian government forces a nerve
    gas attack on a Damascus suburb on August 21 that killed hundreds. The
    Syrian government, backed by Russia, blames the Sunni rebels.

    "Turkey is the country which will be most affected by any attacks by
    the regime and the uncertainty and chaos in Syria," the government
    motion said.

    Through its rights drawn from international law, Turkey is obliged to
    take necessary measures against any kind of action from Syria which
    presents an "open and near threat," it said.

    Turkey, one of Assad's fiercest critics, has advocated military
    intervention in Syria and has grown frustrated over what it sees as
    Western indecisiveness.

    While it has the second-largest military land force in NATO, it is
    unlikely to act alone in any military operation, with public opinion
    largely against intervention.

    A current parliament mandate allowing Turkey to send troops into Syria
    expires on Friday. The ruling AK Party has a strong parliamentary
    majority and the extension is expected to pass despite opposition,
    especially from the main pro-Kurdish party.

    Turkey, which shares a 900 km border with Syria, has seen the conflict
    frequently spill across its frontier and has responded in kind when
    mortars and shells fired from Syria have hit its soil, in some cases
    killing Turkish civilians.

    Turkish warplanes shot down a Syrian helicopter last month after it
    crossed into Turkish air space, one of the most serious cross-border
    incidents of the two-and-a-half year conflict, drawing a rebuke
    from Damascus.

    Turkey is also sheltering a quarter of the 2 million people who have
    fled the Syrian conflict.

    It has bolstered its defenses and deployed additional troops on its
    border with Syria in recent weeks, with convoys of military vehicles
    ferrying equipment and personnel and additional short-range air
    defenses set up.

    http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/news/170756/




    From: A. Papazian
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