Turkey signals restraint as war of words with Israel escalates over Syria
The Turkish president’s top communications aide says Ankara will not be drawn into the Israeli government's “games” as Washington pushes a Turkey-Israel-Syria deconfliction mechanism.
ANKARA — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s top communications aide, Burhanettin Duran, said Thursday that Ankara would not be drawn into what he called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s efforts to undermine regional stability, suggesting Turkey would seek to avoid further escalation.
What happened: “History has clearly and unequivocally shown that there is nothing we would not do to protect our own security, the survival of our state and the well-being of our nation,” Duran told Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency.
"However, we are also experienced enough not to fall for the games of figures like Netanyahu aimed at undermining peace and stability in our region,” Duran added.
The remarks came amid a widening war of words between Ankara and Israel following Israel's strikes on Syria’s Abu al-Duhur air base on Tuesday.
