'Turkey's operations prevents terrorist statelets in Iraq, Syria'
Turkey's governing Justice and Development (AK) Party's spokesperson Omer Celik said "de facto terrorist statelets" would have emerged across Turkey's southern borders with Iraq and Syria if Ankara had not carried out its anti-terror operations.
AK Party Spokesperson Omer Celik issues statements after the Central Executive Board meeting of AK Party chaired by President Recep Tayyıp Erdogan.
Turkey will never allow terrorist formations near its borders or tolerate terrorist statelets says the spokesman for Turkey's governing Justice and Development (AK) Party.
The party's spokesperson Omer Celik said, "de-facto terrorist statelets" would have emerged across Turkey's southern borders with Iraq and Syria if Ankara had not conducted its anti-terror operations in recent years.
READ MORE: Turkey extends motion for cross-border operations in northern Iraq, Syria
His remarks came after a meeting of the AK Party's Central Executive Board in Ankara on October 28. The meeting was chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
On Tuesday October 26, Turkey's parliament ratified a motion extending the government's authorisation to launch cross-border anti-terrorist operations in northern Iraq and Syria for two more years. It also committed to continued participation in its Lebanon peacekeeping mission.
Osman Kavala case
Celik also commented on the joint statement issued by 10 countries' ambassadors in response to Turkish citizen Osman Kavala’s detention.
He emphasised the actions are neither keeping with diplomatic prestige nor in line with a diplomatic mission's mandate, while expressing hopes that similar incidents would not occur in the future.
Last week, Turkey's Foreign Ministry summoned the ambassadors of these 10 countries —including the US, Germany, and France— for attempting to meddle with the Turkish judiciary through a joint statement on an ongoing legal case for Kavala's involvement in the defeated 2016 coup.
READ MORE: Western envoys announce compliance with Vienna Convention over Kavala row
On Saturday, Erdogan ordered the foreign minister to declare the 10 ambassadors persona non grata.
On Monday, the 10 embassies affirmed their commitment to Article 41 of the Vienna Convention, requiring foreign envoys not to interfere in the internal matters of the states they serve in.
After the announcement, Erdogan said he expects them to "be more careful in their statements regarding Turkey's sovereign rights."
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