Iran urges Turkey to stop army offensive in northern Syria

A picture taken on February 5, 2018, on a mountain on the Syrian-Turkish border, north of Azaz, shows Turkish-backed Syrian rebels watching as smoke billows in the village of Al-Amud following artillery shelling. (AFP)

LONDON: Iran urged Turkey on Monday to stop its military offensive in Syria, saying the operation in the northern Afrin region breached Syrian sovereignty and would increase tension in the war-damaged country.
Turkey last month launched an air and ground campaign, dubbed Operation Olive Branch, against the Kurdish YPG militia in Afrin.
"Turkey should stop its operation and respect Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity," Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA.
"Turkey’s actions can bring back insecurity, instability and terrorism to Syria," he added.
Qasemi said any solution to the Syrian crisis should be discussed in talks in the Kazakh capital Astana that are sponsored by Russia, Iran, and Turkey.
He said Iran was in continuous talks with both Turkey and Russia about the latest developments in Syria.
Russia and Iran back Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey supports Assad's opponents.
Ankara considers the U.S.-backed YPG, which controls Afrin, to be a terrorist group and an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has fought an insurgency in Turkey's largely Kurdish southeast since 1984.