Hulusi Akar: Ground operation in Syria to be carried out as soon as possible

The ground operation of the Turkish Armed Forces in Syria will begin as soon as possible, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said, Report informs referring to Yeni Safak newspaper.

On November 25, a meeting of the ruling Justice and Development Party was held under the chairmanship of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The main topic of the meeting was the fight against terrorism. Minister of National Defense Hulusi Akar and Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu made presentations.

Akar’s report stated that the ground operation would be carried out ‘as soon as possible,’and that it was not possible to obtain ‘the desired support, both from Russia and from the US, regarding the air Operation Claw-Sword in northern Syria.’ The minister assured that despite this, the air operation was successful.

On November 20, the Turkish Ministry of Defense announced the start of Operation Claw-Sword. Ankara believes the Kurdistan Workers’ Party in Syria was involved in the terror attack in the center of Istanbul, which occurred on November 13.