President Erdoğan: We have paused Operation Peace Spring for 120 hours starting from last evening
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke to foreign members of the press in Istanbul.
President Erdoğan, regarding the Joint Turkish-US Statement on Northeast Syria, said: “We put forward an offer at AK Party’s Parliamentary Group Meeting in Ankara for the U.S. and those who used to call on us to stop the operation. We said back then that if they wanted an immediate solution to the issue, they needed to make sure the terrorist organization laid down arms and equipment, destroyed their traps and pulled out of the safe zone without delay.”
THE U.S. TO MAKE SURE TERRORISTS WITHDRAW FROM THE DECLARED SAFE ZONE WITHIN 120 HOURS
“U.S. President Trump offered to send a delegation comprised of U.S. Vice President, State Secretary, National Security Advisor and Special Representative for Syria to discuss the situation in Syria and find a solution,” stated President Erdoğan, and added: “We said they were most welcome to visit. The delegation headed by U.S. Vice President Pence put forward an offer spanning over five nights instead of our one-day offer. We thoroughly discussed this offer with our colleagues and reached an agreement with our counterparts.”
President Erdoğan continued as follows: “According to the 13-point agreement we declared to the public, the U.S. will make sure that the terrorists withdraw from the declared safe zone within 120 hours, in other words within five days. Therefore, we have paused Operation Peace Spring for 120 hours starting from last evening. Within the 120-hour timeframe, the weapons in the hands of the terrorists will be re-collected, their fortifications and fighting positions will be destroyed and they will be removed from the 30-km zone. Upon the completion of this process, Operation Peace Spring will be halted after the safe zone is left to the Turkish Armed Forces’ control. According to our agreement with the U.S., upon the completion of this process all sanctions against our country will be lifted.”
