Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım underlined Wednesday that Turkey's ongoing Operation Olive Branch in northwestern Syria's Afrin region has no occupation motive, while commenting on French President Emmanuel Macron's previous statements regarding the counter-terror operation.
"It would be enough to look at the area of 2,000 square kilometers (772 square miles) cleared of terrorists along the Manbij, Jarablus and Azez line during Operation Euphrates Shield to understand what we want to do in Afrin," Yıldırım said, adding that any other assessment of the situation was "far away from the truth."
In an interview with Le Figaro newspaper published on Wednesday, Macron said that Turkey should coordinate its ongoing actions in northern Syria with its European allies.
"If it turns out that this operation takes a turn other than to fight a potential terrorist threat to the Turkish border and becomes an invasion operation, [then] this becomes a real problem for us," he said, adding that he would discuss the issue with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Operation Olive Branch was launched by Turkey on Jan. 20 to remove the PKK/PYD/YPG/KCK and Daesh terrorists from Afrin in northwestern Syria.
According to the Turkish General Staff, the operation aims to establish security and stability along Turkish borders and in the region as well as to protect Syrian people from the oppression and cruelty of terrorists.
The operation is being carried out under the framework of Turkey's rights within international law, U.N. Security Council resolutions, its right to self-defense under the U.N. charter and respect for Syria's territorial integrity, it said.
The military also said "utmost importance" is being placed on not harming any civilians.
The operation in Afrin – bordering Turkey's Hatay and Kilis provinces – was widely expected in the wake of Turkey's Operation Euphrates Shield in northern Syria, which cleared Daesh terrorists from Turkey's border between Aug. 24, 2016, and March 2017.
Afrin has been a major hideout for the YPG/PKK since July 2012 when the Assad regime in Syria left the city to the terror group without putting up a fight.
