Turkey: Syrian regime attacks catastrophic for civilians

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - Recent attacks by the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria have been catastrophic, Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said on Friday.

"Unfortunately, the recent attacks of the Syrian regime make too much civilian catastrophes," Oktay told Bloomberg in an exclusive interview.

According to the UN, more than 1,000 civilians were killed in and around the Idlib demilitarized zone in northwestern Syria in the last four months.

Turkey and Russia had agreed last September to turn Idlib into a de-escalation zone in which acts of aggression are expressly prohibited.

The Syrian regime, however, has consistently broken the terms of the cease-fire, launching frequent attacks inside the de-escalation zone.

Asked about the European stance on Syrian refugees, Oktay said: "I am not sure whether there is a European stance."

He added that Europe is much into its own issues when it comes to migrants.

On Wednesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned Turkey could "open its doors" to let the Syrian refugees to cross to Europe if Ankara does not get expected support.