The leader of the foreign-backed Syria opposition coalition, Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib, says any military intervention by Turkey in Syria would pose a great danger to the entire Middle East.
Speaking in an interview with Anatolia News Agency on Tuesday, he noted that deceitful forces are determined to trigger war in the region in order to keep the Muslim world contained in a desert for centuries, reiterating that he is opposed to foreign military intervention in Syria.
“Turkey’s military intervention in Syria will result in the engagement of the regional powers, above all Iran, which will then cause the conflict to spread to the Persian Gulf, and this would be a great threat to the entire region,” he added.
Ankara has openly voiced support for the militants fighting against Damascus.
Commenting on negotiating with President Bashar al-Assad, Khatib said, “We offered negotiating with Bashar al-Assad’s government not for the political and military benefits, but to save the lives of people and end the violence and clashes.”
On January 30, Khatib announced that he is ready for “direct discussions” with representatives of the Syrian government in Cairo, Tunis or Istanbul.
However, he added that there are “basic conditions” before holding talks with the Syrian officials over the crisis in the Arab country.
The so-called Syrian National Coalition and other foreign-backed opposition groups had stressed in the past that the Syrian president must step down before any negotiations.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011. Many people, including large numbers of security forces, have been killed in the turmoil.
The Syrian government has said that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country, and that a very large number of the militants operating in the country are foreign nationals.
PG/SS
via PressTV – Syria opposition warns Turkey against military intervention.