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Wednesday 11 Nov 2015 - 14:06 Makkah mean time-29-1-1437
Antalya, Turkey (IINA) - Turkish President Recep Erdogan said on Tuesday that Turkey is prepared to open other air bases for the anti-ISIS coalition as part of an escalation in the campaign against the group, Anadolu Agency reported.
The president was speaking to journalists in the southern coastal town of Belek, Antalya province, ahead of next week’s G20 summit, which is expected to focus partially on the conflict in Syria.
“We need to clearly express that there are some individual and collective steps that Turkey will take against any terrorist organization, particularly ISIS”, he said.
Referring to the Incirlik air base in Adana province that is being used by U.S. warplanes to attack ISIS targets, Erdogan noted that the use of other air bases against ISIS is possible if redeemed necessary, stressing that Turkey is determined to fight the group.
Turkey stepped up its campaign against the militant group in July when it carried out its first airstrikes in Syria. Since then, ISIS has carried out suicide bomb attacks in Turkey that have resulted in more than 130 deaths, including the October attack in Ankara.
Erdogan revealed that he had a 45-minute phone call with U.S. President Barrack Obama on Monday to discuss the civil war in Syria.
He also criticized Russia for conducting airstrikes against non-ISIS targets. “The attitude of the coalition forces is really important”, he said. “To strike civilians or the Turkmens in Syria in the guise of striking ISIS is not tolerable”.
Regarding the safe zone for refugees that Turkey has been trying to create in northern Syria, Erdogan said that there had been positive developments on establishing the zone as well as a no-fly area in the skies above it. “Some friendly countries have begun supporting the safe-zone issue”, he said.
The leaders of the world’s 20 biggest economies, with the exception of Argentine's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, are to meet in Belek on Nov. 15 and 16 amid tight security to discuss global economic growth and jobs, Syria, the refugee crisis and other issues.
AG/IINA
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