Turkey getting Ready to invade Syria
Russia yesterday accused Turkey of actively preparing to invade Syria, saying it had spotted troops and military equipment on the border with the war-torn country.
"We have serious grounds to suspect Turkey is in intensive preparations for an armed invasion of the territory of a sovereign state -- the Syrian Arab Republic," the defence ministry said in a statement.
Ties between Moscow, which supports the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Ankara, which is a staunch backer of the opposition, have been in tatters since Turkey shot down a Russian bomber on the Syrian border in November.
Moscow's claims came as Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking at an international aid conference for Syria in London, implicitly accused Russia of "war crimes" in the country.
Ankara earlier yesterday said that it had refused to allow a Russian reconnaissance plane to overfly its territory near Syria because of a disagreement over the flight plan.
Russia said Turkey had not given Moscow any clear explanation for the decision.
"Moreover, we are recording more and more signs of covert preparations by the Turkish armed forces for active action on Syrian territory," it said, adding that Russia has ramped up reconnaissance in the Middle East.
Russia also said it was surprised that representatives of Pentagon, Nato and human rights organisations in Syria did not issue any reaction. The Turkish foreign ministry declined to immediately comment on the Russian claim.
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