ANKARA: Türkiye firmly rejected on Wednesday what it called "untenable allegations" by Israel regarding its military position in Syria, after Israel bombed a Syrian air base near the Turkish border and said Syria was on the verge of permitting Turkish troops to deploy there. Israel carried out air strikes against the Abu Al Duhur base near Aleppo on Tuesday, drawing condemnation from Türkiye and criticism from a US envoy who called the attack an "unnecessary escalation".
In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said late on Tuesday that Syria was on the verge of violating a "status quo agreed with Israel in security matters" by allowing Turkish troops to deploy at the airbase, adding that such a deployment would threaten Israel's security and it would not tolerate this.
In response, Türkiye's presidency said the "imputations" from Netanyahu's office stemmed from his intention to pursue "expansionist and destabilising policies" ahead of elections in Israel, adding that lasting regional peace could only be achieved if Israel respected international law and abandoned its "aggressive and coercive policies". "The untenable allegations put forward by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office are intended to legitimise Israel’s unlawful air strikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity," it said on X, without explicitly referring to any potential deployment plans. "Türkiye will resolutely continue to cooperate with the Syrian Government on a legitimate basis for the establishment of peace, stability, and prosperity in Syria, and will never allow the destabilisation of Syria."
The strikes on Tuesday follow worsening security tensions between Israel and Türkiye and increasingly sharp rhetoric between the two countries over Syria, where both countries' militaries are active. Türkiye, which has Nato's second-largest army and has emerged as one of Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa's main allies, accuses Israel of trying to destabilise Syria and undermine its new administration, repeatedly calling for international pressure and measures on Israel to respect Syria’s territorial integrity.
Ankara has been training Syria's army, helping it rebuild its state institutions and infrastructure, and providing military and diplomatic support. Last year, Türkiye and Israel - also sharply at odds over the war in Gaza - established a line of communication to avoid any incidents in Syria. Tom Barrack, the US special presidential envoy for Syria and Iraq, said after the strikes on Tuesday that Washington was working to establish a deconfliction mechanism among Israel, Türkiye and Syria, and added that the US already facilitates an information-sharing and dialogue mechanism among the parties.
Meanwhile, Türkiye is ready to work with Damascus to look for oil and gas in Syria, Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said on Wednesday. Turkish state oil company TPAO and private companies are ready for seismical surveys and exploration drilling, both offshore and onshore in Syria, Bayraktar said at a joint press conference in Damascus with Syrian Energy Minister Mohamed al Bashir.
Türkiye operates a deep-sea drilling fleet and is drilling an exploration well off the coast of Somalia. The state oil company also won a licence to look for oil in Libyan offshore fields. Türkiye and Syria will commission new infrastructure over the next few weeks, tripling electricity transmission capacity to over 800 megawatts, Bayraktar said. Turkish state-owned mining company MTA IC and Syria's general directorate for mineral sources also signed an unbinding agreement on phosphate resources during the visit, paving the way for an eventual joint venture, according to Türkiye's energy ministry. — Reuters
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