Türkiye expects Austria to support its rightful struggle against terrorist groups, Parliament Speaker Mustafa Şentop said Monday.

Şentop, who traveled to Austria upon the invitation of Austrian Parliament Speaker Wolfgang Sobotka, met with the members of the Austria-Türkiye Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group, chaired by Nurten Yılmaz, a politician of Turkish descent from the Social Democratic Party.

Türkiye has the right to protect itself against terrorism, Şentop said, adding: "Türkiye will not allow members of the terrorist group to receive training and education there (Syria). We expect the support of our friends in this rightful issue."

Referring to the remarks by the Austrian parliamentarians about Türkiye's cross-border operation, Şentop said: "We expect a principled stance from all our friends. They are thousands of kilometers away from Syria, but the United States has military elements. What is the U.S. looking for in Syria? It is right next to Türkiye's border. Syria has no means of protecting the other side of its border. Türkiye does not have to wait for terrorist groups to come and take action in Türkiye."

Şentop highlighted that he has never heard any European countries' objection to the U.S. presence in Syria and underlined that Türkiye has the right to protect itself against terrorism.

"I have read a lot of studies that many countries harmed civilians in operations. It is also possible to follow them in the media. There were many incidents that the U.S. and some European countries said 'sorry.' It happened in Afghanistan, it happened in Iraq. We did not see the necessary reaction from European politicians. The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) is the most sensitive army in the world when it comes to civilians. Even by mistake, civilians were not harmed. Expressing concerns about civilians in principle does not bother us, but Türkiye will not allow members of the terrorist group to receive education and training there (in Syria). We expect the support of our friends in this rightful issue. Our conscience is good. Our target is the terrorist groups there," he said.

Recently, Türkiye launched Operation Claw-Sword, a cross-border aerial campaign against the PKK terrorist group and its Syrian wing, the YPG, which have illegal hideouts across the Iraqi and Syrian borders where they plan and sometimes execute attacks on Turkish soil.

The country's air operation followed a PKK/YPG terrorist attack on Nov. 13 on Istanbul's crowded Istiklal Street that killed six people and left 81 injured.

After the air operation was launched, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also signaled a ground operation to northern Iraq and northern Syria to eliminate the terror threat, saying: "This is not limited to just an air operation."

The Turkish leader has threatened a new military operation into northern Syria since May and upped those threats in the wake of this month's attack. Erdoğan has repeatedly called for a 30-kilometer (18.6-mile) "safe zone" to protect Türkiye against cross-border attacks from Syrian territory.

"We know the identity, location and track record of the terrorists. We also know very well who patronizes, arms and encourages terrorists," Erdoğan also recently said, implying the U.S. support for the YPG.

The PKK is a designated terrorist organization in the United States, Türkiye and the European Union, and Washington's support for its Syrian affiliate has been a major strain on bilateral relations with Ankara. The PKK/YPG has controlled much of northeastern Syria after the forces of Syrian regime leader Bashar Assad withdrew in 2012. The U.S. primarily partnered with PKK/YPG terrorists in northeastern Syria in its fight against the Daesh terrorist group. On the other hand, Türkiye strongly opposed the PKK/YPG's presence in northern Syria.

Under the pretext of fighting Daesh, the U.S. has provided military training and given truckloads of military support to the PKK/YPG, despite its NATO ally's security concerns. Underlining that one cannot support one terrorist group to defeat another, Türkiye conducted its counterterrorism operations throughout, removing a significant number of terrorists from the region.

Since 2016, Ankara has launched a trio of successful counterterrorism operations across its border in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor and enable the peaceful settlement of residents: Euphrates Shield (2016), Olive Branch (2018) and Peace Spring (2019).

Ties with Austria

Regarding bilateral ties with Austria, Şentop said that Türkiye expects to look ahead with a positive agenda and improve relations, hoping that the two countries have left behind the difficulties of the past years.

Noting that one of the most important elements of the relations between Türkiye and Austria is the Turkish community, which has about 300,000 people living in Austria, Şentop noted that some basic problems of Turkish society have not been resolved yet.

The relations between Türkiye and Austria are based on a long history. The first (1529) and second (1683) sieges of Vienna by the Ottoman Empire appear to have had a long-standing effect on relations. The Turkish republic and the Austrian republic established after the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire and the Austrian Empire respectively, both in the same alliance during World War I, have continued to develop their relations. Within this framework, a "Friendship Agreement" was signed in 1924 between Türkiye and Austria.

Türkiye's accession process to the European Union and the Turkish community in Austria constitute the two important elements in Turkish-Austrian relations. The Turkish community in Austria is composed of nearly 300,000 people, of which half are Austrian citizens. Despite some positive developments in bilateral relations between Türkiye and Austria in recent years, the fluctuating course still continues.

The deep-rooted prejudiced approach of Austrian public opinion, particularly of Austrian politics against Türkiye, plays a major role in this. Indeed, similar to the 2016 presidential elections, the early general elections on Oct. 15, 2017, became an instrument for Austrian politicians; thus the anti-Türkiye rhetoric has delayed the normalization process between the two countries. Although a decrease has been observed in anti-Türkiye rhetoric in the last general elections in Austria on Sept. 29, 2019, compared to the previous ones, the negative attitude toward Türkiye’s EU membership has been underlined frequently.

Şentop expressed that discrimination, xenophobia, racism and anti-Muslims also negatively affect citizens of Turkish descent in Austria and that Ankara is concerned about this.

"Increasing xenophobic attacks and actions against our citizens, workplaces, Turkish mosques or associations worry us. The Austrian-Turkish society should feel the assurance of the Austrian state behind it more against discrimination and racist and anti-Islamic attacks."

The rising trend of Islamophobia, racism and xenophobia has been disturbing the Turkish community living in Western countries, particularly in Europe.

Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, have frequently urged European decision-makers and politicians to take a stance against racism and other types of discrimination that have threatened the lives of millions of people living within the bloc’s borders.